March 9, 2021 Â |Â Lynchburg, Va.Â
Flames sophomore forward Evan Enrich slides through the left crease as he scores Liberty’s third goal Saturday at the LIC.
After opening the season with two home wins over Coastal Carolina in early November and starting the spring semester with two losses to the Chanticleers in late January, Liberty University’s ACHA Division III men’s hockey team completed its six-game homestand against Coastal by sweeping its former ACCHL rival by 5-3 and 4-1 scores at the LIC.
Senior forward Adam Partridge started the scoring for the Flames in Friday night’s opener by taking a pass back from Jaime Ross on a right-circle faceoff and unleashing a wrist shot inside the left post just over five minutes into the first period.
Coastal junior forward Gordon Gerstner tied it up by starting and finishing a 3-on-2 rush at the other end at the 11:24 mark before Liberty freshman defenseman Graham Wood tipped senior forward Scott Chisholm’s shot from the top of the left circle off a pass from Partridge with 4:44 to play in the first.
Just 37 seconds later, Flames freshman forward Josiah Zaragoza punched in the rebound of a Partridge putback in front after Ross had his breakaway shot blocked by Chanticleers goalie Trent Lebreque, stretching Liberty’s lead to 3-1 at the 4:07 mark.
Then, less than five minutes into the second period, Chisholm deflected in a shot from the left circle by sophomore defenseman Jordan Chamberlain, making it 4-1 in favor of the Flames. Chisholm capped the scoring for the home team with a backhanded shot in the slot off an entry pass from Partridge with 11:40 still to play in the second period.
Coastal snuck the puck past senior goalie Sam Bell twice in the final 10 minutes of the third to make it a two-goal game, but it would get no closer.
Liberty honored Bell and the Flames’ other three seniors — Partridge, the head captain, and alternate captains Chisholm and defenseman T.J. Moores — before Saturday’s rematch.
Chamberlain started the scoring less than seven minutes after the opening faceoff by threading a wrist shot from the high slot inside the right post. The Chanticleers tied it a 1-1 with 3:58 remaining in the first period, beating sophomore goalie Ben Algatt on a two-on-two counterattack, before the Flames responded with three unanswered goals.
Chisholm netted the game-winner just 51 seconds later with a shot in the left circle that handcuffed Coastal goalie Griffin Williams glove-side for a 2-1 Liberty advantage.
Sophomore forward Evan Enrich gave the Flames a two-goal cushion by skating through traffic up the left wing and slipping a shot past Williams as he maneuvered between defensemen and crashed into the left crease, falling on his stomach as he scored with 12:53 left in the second period. Michael Williams capped the scoring early in the third period with a power play goal assisted by fellow freshman forward William Smiley and Chamberlain.
The Flames (5-5-1 ) will travel to Knoxville, Tenn., this weekend for games against Tennessee on Friday at 11 p.m. and Saturday at 4 p.m. Liberty split a home series with the Volunteers on Feb. 27-28.
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Videos by Patrick Strawn/Club Sports Director of Video & Media
