Spartans Skate to 4-4 Deadlock with Badgers

Nov. 24, 2007

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Rick Bryan

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Bryan Lerg and Matt Schepke each had a pair of goals, but Wisconsin clawed back from a 4-2 deficit in the third period to skate to a 4-4 tie with Michigan State on Saturday evening at Munn Arena. Jeff Lerg made a season-best 33 saves in the stalemate (16 in the third period and overtime), as the Spartans recorded their second consecutive tie. MSU is now 8-3-2 on the season, while Wisconsin is 5-6-1.

The game featured end-to-end action throughout, with good scoring chances in each end. Michigan State was the team that jumped on the board first, as Bryan Lerg netted his fourth of the season at 12:04. He took a pass from blueliner Daniel Vukovic in the left circle, and his shot beat Badger goalie Scott Gudmandson five-hole.

The visitors got a tying goal just over a minute later, when Ryan McDonagh's shot from the left point caromed off the stick of an MSU defender at the right of the crease and beat Jeff Lerg for the winger's first tally of the year.

Michigan State's power play - which had struggled over the last three games - gave the Spartans a 2-1 lead with 2:40 remaining in the opening period. Nick Sucharski's shot from the point was tipped by Chris Mueller in flight, and the shot was saved by Gudmandson. The puck trickled through his five-hole and laid in the crease - Matt Schepke pounced on it behind the netminder, and buried his sixth goal of the season.

The Badgers got the tying tally with just 5.6 seconds remaining in the second period. MSU failed in three attempts to clear the zone, and Davis Drewiske launched a shot from the left point that was saved by Jeff Lerg. The rebound came out to the left side for a falling Patrick Johnson, who managed to push the puck across the low slot to an unchecked Blake Geoffrion. Geoffrion had a open look at the right side of the net, and the centerman popped his fifth of the season to send Wisconsin into the locker room with a 2-2 tie.

Schepke and Bryan Lerg potted a pair of goals just 38 seconds apart to push the Spartans back in front, 4-2. Schepke's tally came as a result of a two-on-one with Corey Tropp - Tropp carried the puck up the right side and dished to Schepke, who then moved left-to-right across the top of the crease and pushed a backhander under the glove hand of Gudmandson at 6:22. At 6:50, Lerg followed suit, taking a backhand cross-slot feed from Dustin Gazley and potting his second of the night.

The Badgers pushed to get back into the game, and cut the lead to 4-3 on a John Mitchell goal at 10:53. Drewiske's slapshot from the left point caromed off Mitchell's stick in front, and it eluded Jeff Lerg stick-side. Three minutes later, Ben Street got in behind the MSU defense and broke in alone, and backhanded the tying goal top-shelf over the glove hand of Jeff Lerg to send the game into the final six minutes tied at four.

The Spartans, now winless in their last four games (0-2-2) will next take to the road for just their third trip this season- MSU has a pair at CCHA clustermate Lake Superior next weekend.

NOTES: Michigan State played to a tie for the second consecutive night. The Spartans are undefeated in their last 17 overtime games (6-0-11) ... MSU scored the first goal of the game for the first time in four contests. The Spartans own a 6-0-1 record when scoring first ... MSU had two, two-goal scorers in a game for the second time this season. Dustin Gazley and Matt Schepke did it back on Oct. 19 against Colgate ... Daniel Vukovic's assist on Bryan Lerg's first-period tally was his first point in four games ... Chris Mueller has points in back-to-back games for the first time this season ... MSU is winless in its last four games at home (0-2-2) ... The Spartans have yet to defeat a ranked team this season (0-3-2) - they are 0-3 against teams ranked No. 1 at the time of the game, and tied both Minnesota (# 13/15) and Wisconsin (#12/14) ... The Spartans' penalty kill was a perfect 6-for-6 on the weekend.