The Kent State hockey club (18-13) finished the weekend with two wins against Slippery Rock University (9-18). 

“It’s always good to finish out the weekend with two wins,” said head coach Jim Underwood, who also expressed dissatisfaction with the uncertainty of the third period Saturday.

“We looked good in spurts, but in certain areas we weren’t strong enough,” he said.

The team came out swinging Friday, quickly scoring two goals, giving Kent a 2-0 lead as the second period began. The next period was slower for the team, giving up two goals and entering the third period with a lead of 3-2.

In the third period the team found the footing needed to close the game out, winning 6-3 after three goals by freshman forward Rubin Chavarria, freshman forward Sean Moore and junior forward John Buttitta.

“We sandwiched two good periods around an average period and that was enough to get us the win tonight,” Underwood said. 

Saturday, the team moved quickly but didn’t gain as much ground as it had hoped for, scoring only one goal in the first period during a power play.

The Flashes controlled the puck for much of the second period, but only one goal was scored by Buttitta, ending the second period 2-0.

In the third period, Slippery Rock scored for the first time on a power play. The Flashes responded with scoring two more goals in the final period.

The final Flashes goal was made by senior defender Bobby Rhue. Rhue’s goal gave the Flashes a much-needed three goal cushion, as Slippery Rock scored two more goals before the final horn. 

“It always feels good to sweep teams at home, but we’re always looking to improve,” Rhue said. “We didn’t finish the way we wanted to finish.”

“We’re gonna have to make sure we’re winning all our battles along the boards and getting the puck into their zone,” Underwood said about going forward into the team’s next games.

Currently on a three-game winning streak, the team hopes to extend its momentum into this weekend, when they face off against the University of Michigan-Dearborn this Friday and Saturday.

Erik Svensson is a sports reporter, contact him at [email protected].