Ice Hockey: Men's

PITTSBURGH -- It took Penn State 67:45 to get its first goal in the Three Rivers Classic, but once it did, the flood gates opened -- especially for the third line.

The Nittany Lions tallied five times in their win against Ohio State on Saturday at Consol Energy Center and third-liners Casey Bailey, Taylor Holstrom and Max Gardiner had a hand in all of the goals.

Gardiner notched an assist on Curtis Loik's goal at 7:45 in the first period while Bailey and Holstrom scored the next four goals. The three players combined to put up nine points on the afternoon and gave the offense the jumpstart it needed after getting shut out against Robert Morris on Friday.

"Getting shut out last night I think really made us hungry tonight to bang those pucks in around the net," Bailey said after the game.

The freshman from Anchorage, Alaska had perhaps the biggest night of the trio, scoring two goals and adding a pair of helpers.

His performance earned him recognition as the only Penn State player on the all-tournament team, but he was quick to emphasize the team's result postgame.

"Obviously it feels good just to get that win," Bailey said. "I mean anyone that contributes, it's big. But obviously to put those pucks in the net but also contribute assists feels great but just getting the win is the biggest part, for sure."

Penn State generated 11 fewer shots than it did against Robert Morris and was outshot by the Buckeyes by a 40-37 margin.

The Lions were able to cash in on a couple of juicy rebounds, though, and added a powerplay goal in a 5-on-3 situation after Gardiner got a puck deep on the near boards and dished it to Bailey in front for the goal.

Holstrom thought that penetration was crucial.

"Really just getting pucks on net and stopping in front of the net [was the key]," Holstrom said. "We did a lot of that tonight. We were able to get behind the [defense] and just bang a couple home."