MENOMONIE, Wis. – One night after a comfortable victory, No. 15 UW-Stout was tested far more on Saturday, but the Blue Devils answered the call to close out a two-game home sweep of Beloit with a 4–1 win at the Dunn County Ice Arena.
Beloit came out with noticeably more intensity and physicality, pushing the pace early and forcing Stout to earn every inch of ice. The Blue Devils, however, struck first and never trailed.
The opening goal came at 5:05 of the first period when the puck poked loose to the point and Felix Cadieux-Fredette stepped into a slap shot that rang off the post and in for the first tally of the night — the first goal of his collegiate career.
Beloit answered midway through the second to even the score, but Stout quickly reclaimed control during a stretch of open ice. Skating four-on-four, Tristan Therrien found himself one-on-one with a defender, was forced wide to his backhand, and still managed to lift a short-side backhand over the goalie's glove to make it 2–1.
Late in the period, the Blue Devils capitalized on a two-man advantage. With a 5-on-3, Sam Kroon quarterbacked the power play from the point, walked the puck into the high slot, and snapped a shot high glove side for his first goal of the season and a 3–1 Stout lead heading into the third.
The exclamation point came midway through the final frame in what was arguably the goal of the night. McCabe Dvorak weaved through traffic before delivering an unbelievable spinning pass to a wide-open Evan Luxford on the back door for an easy tap-in that sealed the win.
Between the pipes, Ryan Knight delivered another steady performance, highlighted by a sprawling diving backdoor save at 14:10 of the third period. He followed that up with a breakaway stop at 6:55 and flashed the leather again at 5:43 to keep Beloit from mounting any late push.
Offensively, Stout was dangerous all night, hitting the iron seven times, including two posts by Nicholas Stevens, who consistently found himself in prime scoring areas.
With the win, the Blue Devils complete the weekend sweep and continue to build momentum as the WIAC race tightens.
By the Numbers
Up Next
UW-Stout (15-5-1, 8-2-1 WIAC) heads back on the road next weekend for a crucial WIAC series at UW-Superior. The Blue Devils currently sit second in the conference standings, with Superior right behind in third as both teams continue their chase of first-place UW-Eau Claire. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday night in Superior.
