Pipers fall to Tommies in MIAC tournament championship

St. Thomas came out fast, scoring less than two minutes into the game when Alex Arnason  (So., Blaine, Minn.) scored an unassisted goal at 1:33.

That was the only scoring for over a period's worth of playing time, until the Tommies scored a second goal, this time from Nate Ryan (Sr., Apple Valley, Minn.) at 3:25 in the second period. Andrew Panchenko (Sr., Eagan, Minn.) was credited with the lone assist on the goal.

Hamline cut the lead in half, as Luke Chilson (Jr., Rice Lake, Wis.) scored his first goal of the season at 6:46 in the second from Dustin Fulton (Jr., Brooklyn Park, Minn.).

St. Thomas increased their lead to two goals one again, however, scoring to make the score 3-1 at 17:09 in the second. The goal was from Ryan Hoehn (Sr., Waseca, Minn.), with assists from Adam Davis (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.) and Nick Nelson (Fy., Duluth, Minn.).

The final Tommie goal came on an empty-net situation at 18:40 as Nelson scored from Hoehn.

St. Thomas ups their overall record to 19-6-2, following an 11-4-1 MIAC regular season finish. Hamline's overall record drops to 16-7-4, after they finished the regular season at 11-3-2 in the MIAC and with their first conference championship in 60 years.

Hamline University belongs to the NCAA Division III Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, one of the most competitive conferences in the nation. Hamline supports 19 intercollegiate athletic teams for men and women. Find out more about Hamline athletics at www.hamline.edu/hamline_info/athletics.

Creative and innovative teaching and learning attract a diverse student body of nearly 4,600 undergraduate and graduate students to Hamline University. Challenged to create and apply knowledge in local and global contexts, Hamline students develop an individual and community ethic of social justice, civic responsibility, and inclusive leadership and service.

Ranked first in Minnesota among comprehensive master’s universities by U.S.News & World Report, Hamline is also Minnesota’s first university, founded in 1854, and among the first co-educational institutions in the nation.