The seventh ranked Cyclones looked to get back to their consistent winning ways against more tough competition, this time Central Oklahoma — ranked 10th.

Both teams started slow, but the Cyclones were able to jump ahead on a goal by Ray Zimmermann. The Bronchos were getting the shots, up 11-2 near the halfway point, but they couldn’t find the back of the net. The Cyclones also killed off a too many men penalty about seven minutes into the game.

Ty Erramouspe was able to put one home for Central Oklahoma at 14:28. The Cyclones found themselves in pretty good position a couple of times near the end of the period, closing the shot discrepancy to 18-13 after 20 minutes.

The second period was more evenly matched, with the shots only favoring the Bronchos by two — the overall play was about even. A hold and a crosscheck were killed early by the Cyclones.

The third period yielded nothing but three more penalties, all killed off (and all committed by Central Oklahoma). Overtime was more of the same, this time with three skaters aside. The shots still favored the Bronchos 37-27.

Nikita Kozak had a solid night for the Cyclones, but in the shootout the Bronchos broke through. After two misses by Zimmermann and Payton McSherry for the Cyclones, Vitalii Mikhailov found a way to get by Kozak. A miss by Justin Paulson sealed the deal, and the Bronchos were victorious.

The Cyclones were unable to get much offense going after the first half of the first period, with Kozak keeping the team in the game. Cyclone Hockey will look to bounce back Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and salvage another weekend split.