RIVER FALLS, Wis. – UW-Stout struck first, but UW-River Falls responded with four unanswered goals to hand the Blue Devils a 4-1 loss in the first game of the WIAC Tournament Friday night at Hunt Arena.
Jake McAlpine put UW-Stout (12-12-2) on the board early, scoring at 3:09 in the first period off assists from Boyd Stahlbaum and Max Techel. Despite strong goaltending from Ryan Knight, who finished with 23 saves, the Blue Devils couldn't hold off the Falcons' offensive pressure.
Dylan Smith led UW-River Falls (15-10-1) with two second-period goals, while Tyler Lee added a tally late in the second and sealed the game with an empty-netter in the final minutes. Jonny Meiers assisted on three of the Falcons' four goals.
Stout generated chances, outshooting River Falls 31-27, but Falcons goaltender Brennan Boynton stood tall with 30 saves. The Blue Devils went 0-for-4 on the power play, while River Falls killed off all penalties and added an empty-net goal to secure the victory.
The Blue Devils will face UW-River Falls in game two of the series tomorrow night at Hunt Arena.
