February 10, 2019
South Lake Tahoe, CA
The Oregon Ducks hockey team won the PAC-8 championship with a 3-0 shutout against No. 1 South seed California.
The Ducks started the tournament with a shaky start.
Matched up with San Diego State University Aztecs, they had a lot to prove. The team recently swept SDSU the past month in their home turf.
At the beginning of the first period, the teams equally wanted to make their way to the semifinals.
After the first period the teams were tied 1 – 1.
The second period ended the same tied 2 – 2.
The Aztecs came in hot in the third period scoring two goals back to back within minutes and added another halfway through the period making the score 5-2.
With 5 minutes remaining, the Aztec’s took a 5-minute major penalty for boarding. The Ducks answered by scoring 5 goals within those minutes. The Ducks dominated when it mattered most to come back, winning 7-5 to make their way into the semifinals.
On day two of the tournament, the Ducks knew it was all or nothing. They needed to play the full 60 minutes with nothing less to spare as they took on the No. 1 north seed Boise State Broncos.
The Ducks knew this team’s power all too well going 1-3 against them in the regular season.
The game could be anyone’s win as they each scored 2 goals going into the third period. The Ducks took the lead in the final period ending 3-2 to advance to the finals.
This season the Ducks tied California in a series. The Ducks scored each period and became unstoppable with their freshman goalie Grayson Parkes, who shut out California. The Ducks won the championship 3-0.
This is the first time in 10 years the Ducks have won the PAC-8 championship and the first time in over 10 years they will head to the American College Hockey Association division two regionals in Tempe, Arizona, at the end of the month, where they will need another win to head to nationals.
