On Saturday night, the Fort Collins ice hockey team (10-3-2) hosted undefeated and number one ranked Regis Jesuit. Regis, having been the runner-up at the national level last season, hoped to continue their hot streak having won 33 consecutive regular season games. Fort Collins looked to continue riding a streak of their own, winning their last six. In front of a tremendous and enthusiastic crowd at NoCo Ice Center, the Lambkins sought for what would be a great upset.

Fort Collins played with intensity to begin the contest putting pressure on the Regis defense as Fort Collins forward DuHadway Marc opened the scoring with a goal from the left circle. However, after a two-minute minor for holding assessed to Jared McFerran, Regis defenseman Nolan Sargent capitalized on the power play wristing the puck past Fort Collins goaltender Sam Simon. Two minutes later, Regis forward Luke Dosen glided through the left wing slot and sniped the puck just past Simon’s right-hand blocker and the Raiders took a 2-1 lead heading into the first intermission.

Although the first period was evenly matched, the Lambkins knew that playing “evenly matched” would not be enough to defeat the number one team in Colorado. As a result, Fort Collins played the second period with more aggression and focused heavily on puck movement and puck control, especially in the offensive zone. This game plan by Fort Collins head coach Dylan Strom would prove effective.

After a couple of shots were blocked in front of Regis goaltender Gage Bussey, Fort Collins forward Greg Bilek found the loose puck, turned around, and fired a wrister past Bussey. Subsequently, Regis turned the puck over in the attacking zone on the power play and watched Fort Collins forward Ethan Nelson turn on the jets and backhand a shot that sneaked under the arm of Bussey. Regis responded with a goal of their own, but only twenty-four seconds later,  Nelson grabbed the lead back by cashing in his second goal for Fort Collins as a result of a great pass from the right wing by Bilek. Fort Collins extended their lead when captain Chris Frauenknecht deftly deflected a Hayden Pawlikowski pass from the left wing, giving Fort Collins a 5-3 lead heading into the third period.

Regis started to demonstrate their frustration in the third period as complaints and penalties piled up. Fort Collins fed the frustration by displaying greater confidence in obtaining the upset. A major contributor to the effort was Fort Collins goaltender Sam Simon. The sophomore from Rocky Mountain High School displayed great athleticism and awareness in the third period turning away repeated scoring attempts. It wasn’t until 48 seconds left in the game with an extra attacker that Regis forward Mac Padilla tipped in a great feed from teammate Kale Lone to cut the deficit to 5-4. Fortunately for Fort Collins, Simon continued to stand strong in the furious final seconds as the Raiders suffered their first regular season loss since February 17, 2017. The Lambkins completed the upset and improved their record to 11-3-2, while Regis fell to 13-1.

Next, Fort Collins will play the final game of their three-game home stand on Friday when they host Chaparral. For Regis, they return home to face conference foe Cherry Creek on Friday.