HAMILTON, N.Y. (1/6/06) - Colgate sophomore goaltender Justin Kowalkoski (Young America, Minn.) doubled his previous career best with 38 saves, but a tough goal early in the third period proved to be the difference as St. Cloud State defeated the No. 14/12 Raiders, 3-2, on Friday, Jan. 6, at Starr Rink.

Kowalkoski made 17 stops in both the second and third periods as the Huskies outshot the Raiders 41-32. St. Cloud netminder Bobby Goepfert finished the game with 30 saves, including 15 in the first period when Colgate held a 15-5 shot advantage.

St. Cloud got the first goal of the game to take a 1-0 lead 13:31 into the first. Junior Nate Dey skated the puck out of the left-hand corner and tucked it under Kowalkoski’s right pad.

Colgate responded early in the second session. Goepfert turned aside shots by senior captain Jon Smyth (Markham, Ont.) and sophomore Tyler Burton (Langley, B.C.) before freshman Nick St. Pierre (St. Etienne, Que.) beat him from the slot.

The Huskies regained the lead at the 15:54 mark of the second while on the power play. Justin Fletcher and Brock Hooton cycled the puck back and forth between the points before Fletcher moved into an open lane. He took a shot at the net, and Andrew Gordon chipped the rebound past Kowalkoski.

Less than 40 seconds later Colgate evened the score when Burton dropped the puck back to junior Marc Fulton (Vancouver, B.C.), who fired on goal. The puck deflected off a St. Cloud player and went into the top corner of the net.

The Huskies scored the deciding goal 5:49 into the third. SCSU won the faceoff to Aaron Broklehurst at the point, but his shot was saved by Kowalkoski. With the Raider goalie still on his knees, Michael Olson flipped the puck over him and into the net.

Colgate dominated St. Cloud in the faceoff circle, 56-22, led by Burton who won 24 of his 32 draws. The Raiders took eight penalties, including five in the second period, while the Huskies were whistled for seven infractions. SCSU recorded 13 shots on the power play for the game, including 10 in the second frame.

St. Cloud and Colgate return to Starr Rink for the rematch on Saturday starting at 7:00 p.m.