Lake Larsen | Sports Editor
The sun began to set over the hills as the Wolves broke from their huddle for the pregame lineup. Standing shoulder to shoulder in their icy white uniforms and matte black helmets, the Wolves looked ready to dominate in their first home match of the regular season on Feb. 16.
Hoots and hollers rang out from the Western bench as the players knelt for the opening faceoff. Within seconds of the starting whistle, it became obvious that the 0-0 score would be the closest the Redhawks would be to keeping this game close.
After winning the opening faceoff, the Wolves swept the ball around to the back of the goal to let senior attackman Andrew Barnett begin to pick apart the defense. Minutes later, the Wolves found their way onto the scoreboard.
From that point forward, it became evident that Seattle University was no match for Western. With every pass the offense threw, another Western player waved their stick to signal they were open. Once the pass connected, a blisteringly quick shot found its way to the back of the net. At the end of the half, Western stood tall over the Redhawks, 16-0.
With the game already essentially over, the Wolves started to ease up on Seattle University. The final quarters highlighted Western’s restraint and their drive to improve. After putting up 16 points, the Wolves shifted their focus from hammering the back of the net to improving their offensive gameplay.
In the two games leading up to the home-opener, the offense seemed to have been struggling, only able to put up an average of six goals a game. But now with score heavily in Western’s favor, the Wolves wanted to ensure their offense was running as it should.
“The ball movement was a lot better,” said senior history major Alex Eidler. “Everyone was on the same page, and there was not as much selfish play. It was good.”
“I think we’ve got a lot of work to do, but it’s starting to come together. Once we learn to come together as a team, we’ll start playing better,” added Barnett.
On the other side of the field, Western’s defense was also a main influence on the lopsided win. The first and only goal the Redhawks scored was deep into the third quarter on the heels of a fluke play.
After snatching the ball and rocketing down the sideline, first-year goalie Wyatt Livengood was knocked out of bounds, later to be flagged for a delay of game. Being sent to the penalty box, the Wolves were forced to play in a man-down situation with a backup goalie. A powerful shot snuck past the Wolves, leading to a single smudge on an otherwise perfect day for the defensive unit.
“It was a good game, but kind of boring. We weren’t on defense a lot but it was still good,” said Livengood on the blowout win. “I think the defense played really well. I think the defense is what kept us in the last two games as well as tonight.”
As the final horn sounded, the Wolves were on top 23-1. Five different Wolves posted hat tricks, having scored three or more goals. Further, Livengood was credited with a statistical shutout having had six saves and not given up a goal. This victory marks the first home win for the Wolves as well as the first regular season win.
Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu
Photo courtesy of Cora McClain
