Warriors Dominate in Road Win at Ottawa

OTTAWA, Kan. – Midland University hit the road Saturday for a nonconference game against Heart of America Conference opponent Ottawa University. The Warriors took an early lead in the first half and never looked back, defeating the Braves 11-3 in Ottawa, Kansas.

The Braves came out firing, taking the first three shots of the game before Midland took control. Kellan Powers put Midland ahead 1-0 on an assist from Lawson Kopecky with 7:15 left in the first quarter. About five minutes later, Kopecky scored his own goal to double the Warriors' advantage. Midland quickly added a third goal as Cameron Teem converted a man-up opportunity just one minute later after Ottawa's Riley Daniel earned a one-minute penalty for a cross check. Teem received a pass from Lane Kalhoff and fired the ball into the back of the net, giving Midland a 3-0 lead heading into the second quarter.

The Warriors continued to dominate in the second quarter, outshooting Ottawa 20-4. Kopecky opened the scoring in the period with his second goal of the game on an assist from Powers, extending Midland's lead to 4-0 with 12:05 left in the half. The game then slowed, with neither team scoring for the next 10 minutes as Midland outshot Ottawa 10-3 during that stretch. Kopecky finished the half strong, scoring two goals in the final 2:15 to give Midland a 6-0 lead at halftime, with Powers assisting on both goals.

In the third quarter, the Braves showed fight, outshooting Midland 8-6 in the first 10 minutes, but were unable to score. Midland extended its lead to seven when Tanner Jamison scored an unassisted goal with 4:23 left in the quarter. Ottawa responded late, scoring twice in a 41-second span to enter the final quarter down five goals at 7-2.

The Warriors put the game away in the fourth quarter. Powers scored his second goal of the game three minutes in, giving Midland an 8-2 lead. Kopecky added his fifth goal of the game with 6:19 remaining, assisted by Powers, to make it 9-2. Ottawa scored with 5:39 left to narrow the gap to 9-3 before Midland finished the scoring with one goal each from Powers and Kopecky, sealing the 11-3 victory.

Midland dominated the stat sheet, winning face-offs 12-6 and outshooting Ottawa 71-27. The Warriors scored 11 goals on 34 shots on target. Kopecky led the team with six goals on 19 shots, while Powers had three goals and four assists. Sean Erickson earned the win in goal with 13 saves on 27 shots.

Midland (2-2) will aim to build on its two-game winning streak when it travels to Columbia College (3-2) next week. The Warriors face the Cougars at R. Marvin Owens Field on Saturday, March 14, with faceoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m. in Columbia, Missouri.