The Ice Dawgs (3-0-2) traveled to Pelham, Alabama for a weekend series against the University of Alabama Frozen Tide (2-3-1). Game one occurred Friday, Sept. 27, while game two of the series took place Sunday, Sept. 29.
Game 1:
Start to game play was slow with both teams going scoreless throughout the opening frame. Georgia saw the slight upper hand offensively, outshooting Alabama 13 to 11.
Forward Declan Conway (29) broke open the night’s scoring for Georgia off a breakaway goal two minutes into the second period, giving the Ice Dawgs a 1-0 lead.
However, the Frozen Tide responded just four minutes later with back-to-back goals from Parker King (21) and Jacob Best (81). These two tallies gave the Frozen Tide their first lead of the game. Alabama maintained a 1-2 lead for the remainder of the period.
The Ice Dawgs fended off the Frozen Tide for much of the third period’s first half, but King notched his second of the night to extend Alabama’s lead to 1-3. Nonetheless, the Dawgs clawed their way back to an even match in the period’s back end.
With 11:46 left on the clock, Jake Green (91) tapped one in to bring the Ice Dawgs within one. Graham Baird (9) and captain Robby Witwer (14) assisted on the goal.
Just minutes later, Baird scored a goal of his own, assisted by assistant captain Josh Mesaros (26), tying the game at three apiece.
The score remained even for the matchup’s remaining seven minutes, marking the Ice Dawgs’ second draw of the season.
Game 2:
Much like the start to Friday’s matchup, game two also had a slow start. The only goal of the opening frame came with less than five minutes left on the clock.
Assistant captain Jack Gannon (4) got Georgia on the board first, scoring off a pass from Alex Laracy (38).
Despite the slow start, the Ice Dawgs dominated the Frozen Tide in first period scoring opportunities, putting up almost twice the shots-on-goal (14-8).
Early in the second, Laracy cashed in for his second point of the night with a goal assisted by Ryan Bailey (13), upping the Georgia lead to 2-0.
However, the two goal lead was short-lived as Max Savaloja (10) got the Frozen Tide on the board with eight minutes, making it a one goal game.
Alabama continued their offensive streak after the second intermission with a goal scored by Seb Henault (27) to tie the game 2-2 just 20 seconds into the final period.
Georgia regained their lead five minutes later. With some help from Bill Martin (7), the puck trickled in off the stick of defenseman Truman Haugen (27) to give the Dawgs the go-ahead. The score stuck for the remaining time, and with it, Georgia bested the Frozen Tide 3-2 on the road.
Following their win against Alabama, the Ice Dawgs head into their first home series of the season where they will take on Auburn at the Ice Forum in Duluth, Georgia. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. Friday night and 11:00 a.m. Sunday.