The #17 Purdue Northwest ACHA DI Hockey team opened GL6 Playoff action in commanding fashion Tuesday night, defeating #18 Grand Valley State, 3-1, to advance to the semi-finals.

The Basics

• Records: #17 Purdue Northwest, #18 Grand Valley State
• Location: Hammond, Indiana
• Attendance: 500

Inside The Numbers

• PNW outshot Grand Valley State 42-35, including a 19-shot second period surge.
• After a scoreless first, all four goals were scored over the final 25 minutes of play.
• The Pride went 0-for-0 on the power play, while GVSU also did not receive a power-play opportunity.
• Senior defenseman Patrick Hays (Centerville, Ohio/) opened the scoring for PNW with his second goal of the season.
• Sophomore Kolin Leduc (Macomb, Mich./) finished with a goal and an assist, factoring into two of the Pride's three tallies.
• Junior Brodie McIntyre recorded two assists, both coming in the third period.
• Freshman Brock Behrend (Luverne, Minn.) sealed the game late with his 11th goal of the season.
• Senior Cooper Olson (Maple Grove, Minn./) earned the win in goal, stopping 34 of 35 shots in a complete-game performance.
• PNW was disciplined throughout, taking just one minor penalty in the contest.

The Breakdown

• The opening period featured high pace but no scoring, as PNW carried a 14-9 shot advantage while Olson turned away all nine attempts he faced.
• Grand Valley State broke through at 15:20 of the second period when Benjamin Pouliot found the back of the net to give the Lakers a 1-0 lead. The advantage lasted just 46 seconds.
• At 16:06, Hays responded for the Pride, jumping into the play and finishing to tie the game at 1-1 heading into the intermission.
• The decisive stretch came midway through the third period.
• At 12:53, Leduc buried the go-ahead goal off a setup from McIntyre, giving PNW its first lead of the night at 2-1. The Pride tightened defensively from there, limiting second-chance opportunities and protecting the middle of the ice.
• Behrend provided the dagger at 17:21, finishing a sequence created by Leduc and McIntyre to extend the lead to 3-1.
• Grand Valley State pulled its goaltender late, but Olson and the Pride defense held firm to close out the playoff victory.

• PNW now heads to the GL6 Playoffs Semifinals on Friday, February 20 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Puck-drop is set for 7:00 PM CT and their opponent is still to be determined.