UVIC Rebounds with Victory over Top-seeded Coyotes
UVIC comes from behind to down Okanagan College 4-2

For Immediate Release
October 31, 2010

Kelowna, BC – In the back half of the Club’s second road trip of 2010, the University of Victoria met first place Okanagan College on Saturday night at Kelowna Memorial Arena. In net, UVIC gave the nod to Simon Barer while the OC Coyotes countered with Tony Johnston.

After a frustrating defeat Friday night in Kelowna, UVIC came out of the gate with a renewed sense of determination. Just 50 seconds into the game, UVIC worked the puck low in the OC end before Tommy Adair spotted rookie Matt Brown in the slot, who slotted the puck five-hole on the OC goaltender.  Second assist credited to Mitch Bell. UVIC could not hold the momentum as the Coyotes hit the score sheet at the 3:56 mark of the first. Okanagan College took the lead at 10:17 courtesy of Aaron Buat’s second goal of the night. After one period of play, the Coyotes held a 2-1 advantage.

In a very physical affair, UVIC survived a penalty kill early in the second frame before levelling the score. At the 8:20 mark, OC coughed up the puck behind the goal line and Dennis Pavlina spotted Francis Gonella in the high slot who snapped a quick shot on goal, beating Johnston low glove side. The physical play continued for the remainder of the period as the clubs exchanged penalties. The teams skated into the second intermission deadlocked in a 2-2 tie.

In the third stanza, UVIC killed off another early penalty as the teams battled for the lead. At 6:33, Mitch Bell entered the OC zone wide and threw the puck on net. Matt Brown took two hacks at the loose puck to bury it behind Johnston and give UVIC a 3-2 lead. Just one minute later on the power play, UVIC struck again as Doug Evans fired a wrist shot from the right point that beat the Coyotes goaltender high glove side. Okanagan College took two more penalties, allowing UVIC to grind down the clock. With 4:56 remaining and UVIC shorthanded, Simon Barer stood tall in net to preserve the two goal lead. With another late power play and their goaltender pulled, OC could not find the back of the net despite heavy pressure. Final score, UVIC 4 OC 2.

Matt Brown had a stellar performance with two goals while rookies Mitch Bell and Dennis Pavlina each chipped in with two assists. Simon Barer was solid in the UVIC net as he made 30 saves for the victory. With the win, UVIC moves to 5-1-0 and a tie for second place in the league standings with Thompson Rivers University.

UVIC went 1/6=16.7% on the power play while OC was 0/9=0.0%. UVIC was outshot by OC 32-27.

The next action for UVIC will be a home stand that will see SFU come to town on November 13th and attempt to avenge their early season loss to UVIC. The Saturday game will be played at Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre with game time set for 7:30 PM.

The UVIC Hockey Club, a Vikes Sport Clubs program, is a student-led organization that competes competitively in the BC Intercollegiate Hockey League. Information on the team is available through at www.uvicmenshockeyclub.com while league details can be found at www.bcihl.ca.

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For further information contact:

Corey St.Laurent
Director of Media Relations, UVic Hockey
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
250-574-4087
www.uvicmenshockeyclub.com