The M1 IUP Crimson Hawks took on the M1 Alabama Tide in a two-game series at the S&T Bank Arena in Indiana, PA. The Crimson Hawks ended the weekend with two wins moving to a 21-6-0 record.
On Friday (2/10/2023), the Crimson Hawks started strong with two goals in the first period, with Sala scoring the first goal assisted by Winski and Portugallo at 3:15, and Fetzer scoring the second goal assisted by Rearic and Sinicki at 6:41. Alabama responded with two goals of their own in the second period, with Mundy and Simmons finding the back of the net. However, IUP retaliated with two more goals of their own, with Sooy and Rearic scoring. The final goal of the night came from Glavach, who broke the all-time IUP Division 1 scoring record with his 164th point, passing Joe Ford who held the record at 163 points. The game ended with a score of 5-3, with IUP emerging as the victors.
On Saturday (2/11/2023), the Crimson Hawks once again took the lead with three goals in the first period, with Ditullio, Rearic, and Miller all finding the back of the net. Alabama responded with a goal in the third period, but IUP answered with two more goals, with Adams scoring the final goal of the night. The game ended with a final score of 5-2, with IUP securing the victory.
IUP’s goalies, Gates and Stahel, had strong performances, stopping 29 and 32 shots, respectively. Alabama goaltenders Gibbons stopped 29 on 34 shots Friday night and Weiler made 31 saves.
IUP has secured the 2022-2023 CHMA Season Championship the prior week and will end the regular season at home versus RMU Saturday at S&T Bank Arena.