It's no secret that the No. 2 Penn State ACHA Division I Icers' offense isn't as high scoring as years past, but they have still found a way to win.

Thanks to defense.

The Icers (17-5-2) were forced to switch from an offensive emphasis to a defensive one this season after losing three prolific scorers.

"We're not as skilled offensively, so we needed to adjust our game," coach Joe Battista said. "And I think, overall, this defense is stronger than we had last year."

After averaging more than seven goals per game last season, the Icers have only managed to record 3.4 goals per game since November.

Still, Penn State has been able to remain successful due to the defensive adjustments.

"You could pretty much sense since the beginning of the year that we gotta stop them from scoring to win," defenseman Brendan Martin said. "That wasn't the case last year. Last year's case was, 'Let's get the goals early and just bury them.' "

It might not show up on the stat sheet, but the Icers have improved upon blocking shots, tightening coverage and even forechecking.

Battista began preaching defense even before the season started. But after routing teams like Drexel by double-digits, it might have been difficult to get the players to buy into the new system.

According to Martin, the team realized that "halfway through the season," this was going to be different than last year. Of course, that meant there were going to be some growing pains along the way.

Martin said the defense tried to do too much and attempted to take on more of an offensive role early in the season.

"That made it even worse," he said.

The Icers' defense has come a long way, and it remains one of the main reasons why Penn State has been able to defeat the likes of No. 1 Rhode Island -- even without its top scoring threat.

Battista's squad has allowed only 24 shots per game this season, and the freshmen on defense have stepped up in a big way.

Keith Jordan, a rookie, earned a spot on the all-tournament squad at the Nittany Lion Invitational Tournament last weekend and has contributed heavily to the Icers' turnaround.

"Jordan's been nothing short of phenomenal," Battista said. "He's played as well as anybody."

Two other first-year defensemen have seen significant time -- Sean Kenney and Clint Highley.

With an injury to senior Chris Rome and the temporary absence of veteran defensemen Eric Harbaugh and Joe Maglaque, who competed in the World University Games, the Icers have been forced to rely on younger players for the last three weeks.

Luckily, some of the freshmen defenders have been a pleasant surprise.

"Highley sort of came out of nowhere," Battista said. "He's a guy that we weren't even sure we were going to keep on the team."