A 5-0 shutout last night against the No. 3 Ohio Bobcats was not the ideal outcome for the Cyclone Hockey team, but tonight they were able to grind out a 5-4 win to split the series, enhancing their overall record to 14-11-1.

“Our guys played with more grit tonight,” said coach and general manager Jason Fairman.

The Cyclones were able to open the scoring in just 2:38 when forward Jon Severson was able to put one past Bobcats goalie Jimmy Thomas. Over 12 minutes later, the Bobcats were able to get on the board as well with a goal from Gianni Evangelisti. The Cyclones were put in a hole when the Bobcats added another goal at the end of the first going into intermission to give them the 2-1 lead.

Unlike last game when the Cyclones were not able to score any goals against the Bobcats, there were many chances for goals to be scored and those chances came through when the Cyclones added another two goals in the second period to tie up the game 3-3 going into the intermission.

“I thought we were pretty strong in all three periods,” Fairman said. “I don’t know we were any better in the second than we were in the first or the third. Playing in this tough rink has always given us challenges over the years and I am just really proud of the guys.”

The Bobcats were able to take the lead 4-3 just 1:49 into the third period with a goal from Grant Hazel, putting it past Cyclone goaltender Matt Goedeke who got his first start of the series.

It took a few minutes, but the Cyclones were able to score two goals in 30 seconds to take the 5-4 lead into the end of the third with goals from Severson, his second goal of the game, and Aaron Gullickson, giving them a much-needed win to split the series against the Bobcats.

The team is home next weekend for the first time in two weeks when the Robert Morris University Colonials come for a visit.

“We having some depth challenges that we have faced since the begging of the year, we just have to keep finding ways to win,” Fairman said. “We will have to try and figure out what we are going to do next weekend against another top five team.

“We just have to find ways to play the hand we have been dealt.”