Icers cruise in tournament; Jaeger earns MVP honors

Friday night game against Western Michigan was over before it started, as the Icers won easily, 9-1. They followed that up the next day with a commanding 11-1 victory against Washington & Jefferson to claim the NLIT title.

"When the tournament trophy was on the line, our guys came to play," Penn State Icers coach Joe Battista said. "It was an outstanding overall performance."

The Icers came out firing on all cylinders against Washington & Jefferson in the championship game, scoring just 2:32 into the game when Penn State forward Kevin Jaeger, who finished the weekend with nine points and MVP honors, blasted a snap shot into the net from just above the circle.

When it seemed as though the Icers were closing the door on the game after adding two more goals, the Presidents struck back.

Just 18 seconds after Penn State had lengthened its lead to 3-0, Jerry Liberatore beat Icers goalie Scott Blackman and cut the Lions lead to two.

Washington & Jefferson looked to close the gap more as one of the few Penn State miscues sent a President forward in on a partial breakaway. But Blackman came up big stopping the shot and, as it happens in most situations like this, Penn State skated the length of the ice, scoring a goal of its own.

"It was outstanding," Battista said. "They score there and it changes the whole complexion of the game. And instead, we come right back and score right after that. It's a huge swing right there because it goes from 3-2 to 4-1 in 15 seconds."

The second period saw one player crush any hope that remained on the Washington & Jefferson bench. Penn State forward Bill Downey took matters into his own hands, scoring three straight goals for a natural hat trick.

Even more amazing was the fact that each goal was scored in a different situation: one came on the power play, one was of the shorthanded variety and one even strength.

Penn State cruised through the third period and to another NLIT championship.

"I was hoping for a little bit better games," Jaeger said. "They always come out strong but a couple quick goals and it kind of makes the team that we're playing fall apart I guess."

Penn State forward Glenn Zuck moved into second place on the all-time scoring list with an assist on the third goal of the championship game.

He finished the weekend with six points.

"It's always been on the back of my mind," Zuck said. "And I'm just happy I got there and I'm looking forward to moving on the rest of the season."

The Icers scoring touch started just 91 seconds into Friday night's game against Western Michigan and never seemed to fade.

Penn State kept the pressure on, scoring three goals each period and never really giving Western Michigan a chance. The Icers defense clamped down in the third period, not allowing a single shot on goal and carrying them to the win.

"That month off, it's like starting the season over again to an extent," Battista said. "It's tough when your first games back are Ohio at Ohio, which, in the end I still think we played pretty well against them but I think that also served as a real wake up call to us. And we've just been terrific ever since."