The Long Beach State club hockey team defeated Loyola Marymount’s club team 5-3 during a “College Series” game hosted by the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on Thursday night.
The 49ers and the Lions took the ice right after the Los Angeles Kings defeated the Anaheim Ducks 4-3.
“I knew it was going to be cool, but I didn’t think it would be that cool,” LBSU goalkeeper Corey Jones said. “Just thinking [about] skating on the same ice as the pros…it’s pretty incredible.
LMU scored the first goal when forward Kyle Martins gained possession in his zone and passed it to forward Ethan Fink. Fink shot the puck toward the front of the net for his teammate Parker Costin to hit in between the legs of Jones, putting LMU up 1-0.
Early in the second period, LBSU forward Kris Rogers was checked by Fink, which freed the puck. Costin sped the puck undefended through the neutral zone to the net and beat Jones on the glove side to give the Lions a 2-0 lead.
Shortly after, Lions’ forward John Yoder received a two-minute penalty for checking a 49er from behind, which put LBSU on a power play.
With 8:14 left in the second period, LBSU forward Sam Graham scored with an assist by defensemen Blake Rivera and Taylor Abramson, putting the 49ers on the scoreboard at 2-1.
LBSU forward Ian Hoang tied the game at 4:33 in the second period with an assist by forwards Zac Zomaya and Graham.
LBSU defenseman Ian Hoang brings the puck up the ice rink at Staples Center on Sept. 25.
The Beach struck again when LBSU forward Elan Dunaev beat Lions goalkeeper Jake Blazier on his right side to give the 49ers their first lead at 3-2 with 43 seconds left of the second period.
With 10:44 left in the third and last period, Costin’s shot bounced off of Jones’s glove. Fink shot the rebound into the high right side of the net to tie the score 3-3.
With 2:58 left of the game, Hoang scored with an assist by Graham to put LBSU back up 4-3.
LMU pulled its goalkeeper out and put a sixth man on the ice in an attempt to even up the score with 34 seconds left in the game.
Hoang got a breakaway from LMU’s zone and scored on the empty net, setting the final score at 5-3.
“We need to bring a high tempo into these games,” Abramson said. “I think what we did here tonight really set the tempo for this weekend.”
The 49ers will play their first game on the road against Fullerton on Saturday.