UW-Eau Claire, third in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC), played second-place UW-Stout on Friday night. This game, along with the Saturday mini-game win, gave the Blugolds the chance to move onto the WIAC championship.

The first game of the semifinal kicked off with a goal from Stout in the period’s first three minutes. Four minutes later, the Blugolds responded with a game tying goal. This goal was made by Jacob Wolter, senior  forward, who received a pass from his brother, Colton Wolter, also a senior  forward. The first period ended with a shot total of 11 to 9 with the Blugolds in the lead.

The Blugolds continued their shot lead in the second period with the total coming to 26 to 6. In addition to the shot lead, Eau Claire pulled ahead with a score of 3 to 1 at the end of the second period.

With 9 minutes left in the game, Zach Kennedy, a first-year forward, scored his first goal for the team, making the score 4-1. Eau Claire held this lead throughout the remainder of the third period, resulting in a win for the Blugolds.

Zach Dyment, first-year goaltender for Eau Claire, saved 25 of the 26 shots made by Stout through the game.

Saturday night’s game determined if Eau Claire will be heading to the championship or if they would have to play a mini game against Stout for the chance to move on.

Stout started the game with a focus on defense and successfully blocked all shots made by the Blugolds. The Blue Devils once again got the first goal of the game within the first seven minutes. By the end of the period, Stout was still in the lead, 1-0, but Blugolds held the lead in shots attempted.

Eau Claire suffered an 11-minute penalty kill in the second period and were outnumbered by Stout for most of it. The second period ended with Stout holding the lead, however Eau Claire managed to diffuse each of their teams’ power plays.

With eight minutes left in the third period, Jake Bresser, second-year forward for the Blugolds, tied the game at one. Todd Koritzinsky gave the Blugolds the lead with an assist from Johnny Mueller, making the game 2-1. The Blue Devils persisted and made two more goals within the last five minutes of the final period. Stout won their first conference road game of the year with a score of 3-2.

Each team had one win, so one more game was played this weekend. This game was one period long and would determine who would play Stevens Point next weekend for the title.

After half of the first period had elapsed, the Blugolds scored their only goal of the game. Scott Munro, second-year defensemen, scored a goal giving Eau Claire the 1-0 lead. The Blugolds held off the Blue Devils’ attempts to score for the rest of the game, and won the third semifinal game of the weekend.

Next weekend the Blugolds will be at Stevens Point facing off against the Pointers. This game will determine who wins the WIAC championship title.