Friday, October 2
USAFA, Colo.
7:05 pm MT
Air Force Academy
0-0-0
1
vs
4
Omaha (exh.)
0-0-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omaha | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Air Force | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Air Force drops exhibition opener to Omaha, 4-1
10/2/2026 10:17:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
By Tanner Evans
U.S Air Force Academy, Colo. – A two-goal second period was enough to boost Omaha to a 4-1 win over Air Force in an exhibition game, Friday, Oct. 2, at Cadet Ice Arena.
It was a back and forth first period, but Omaha was first on the board. Miles Hilbert batted a puck out of midair and into the back of the net at 6:56 of the first period to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead.
It didn't take long for the Falcons to respond however, as a power-play goal from sophomore forward Cole Christian tied the game two minutes later. Christian found himself between the hashes with the puck on his stick after junior forward Nick Sajevic delivered a pass from the left wall. Christian promptly deposited the puck over the blocker of Omaha goalie Dawson Cowan with 11:03 left in the period.
The two teams went into the first intermission tied 1-1.
A defensive lapse by the Falcons trying to break out of their own zone gave Joel Plante an open look in front of the net, which he buried to give Omaha a 2-1 lead with 10:08 to go in the second period. Luke Woodworth extended the Maverick lead by firing a wrist shot just inside the left post to make the score 3-1 with 7:31 remaining in the period.
Senior goalie Dominik Wasik kept the Falcons in the game by standing tall on a pair of Omaha scoring chances at 4:18 in the period.
Late in the second period, senior defenseman Nolan Cunningham emerged with the puck from a scrum behind the net. The assistant captain drove to the net to give the Falcons their best scoring chance in the dying seconds of the period. Omaha goalie William Lacelle, who came into the game in the middle of the second period, slammed the door and Air Force went into the third period trailing 3-1.
The Falcons exploded out of the locker room, generating several chances to start the third period. They kept the pressure well into the period, getting great looks that didn't find the back of the net from senior forward Brendan Gibbons and junior defenseman Beau Janzig.
Air Force pulled the goalie late in the third period, but ultimately couldn't get anything past Lacelle. With 1:05 remaining, Parker Berge potted the empty netter from deep in his own end to seal a 4-1 Omaha victory.
Air Force outshot Omaha, 31-27, in the game. AF was 1-for-4 on the power play while Omaha was 0-for-1. Dominik Wasik made 23 saves for the Falcons. For Omaha, Dawson Cowen started the game and made 14 saves in 30 minutes. Lacelle played the final 30 minutes and made 14 saves.
"Omaha is a big, deep and fast team and they have the poise of a minor pro team," said head coach Frank Serratore. "That is typical of what things are going to look like this season. It is going to take a while to become the team we want to be. We had some good chances, and I thought their second goalie (Lacelle) was really sharp. We have to do a better job of converting the chances we had. This was good a test for us and we have a few things to polish up."
The Falcons open regular season play on Friday, Oct. 9, when they take on the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. at 6:05pm MT.
--30--
U.S Air Force Academy, Colo. – A two-goal second period was enough to boost Omaha to a 4-1 win over Air Force in an exhibition game, Friday, Oct. 2, at Cadet Ice Arena.
It was a back and forth first period, but Omaha was first on the board. Miles Hilbert batted a puck out of midair and into the back of the net at 6:56 of the first period to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead.
It didn't take long for the Falcons to respond however, as a power-play goal from sophomore forward Cole Christian tied the game two minutes later. Christian found himself between the hashes with the puck on his stick after junior forward Nick Sajevic delivered a pass from the left wall. Christian promptly deposited the puck over the blocker of Omaha goalie Dawson Cowan with 11:03 left in the period.
The two teams went into the first intermission tied 1-1.
A defensive lapse by the Falcons trying to break out of their own zone gave Joel Plante an open look in front of the net, which he buried to give Omaha a 2-1 lead with 10:08 to go in the second period. Luke Woodworth extended the Maverick lead by firing a wrist shot just inside the left post to make the score 3-1 with 7:31 remaining in the period.
Senior goalie Dominik Wasik kept the Falcons in the game by standing tall on a pair of Omaha scoring chances at 4:18 in the period.
Late in the second period, senior defenseman Nolan Cunningham emerged with the puck from a scrum behind the net. The assistant captain drove to the net to give the Falcons their best scoring chance in the dying seconds of the period. Omaha goalie William Lacelle, who came into the game in the middle of the second period, slammed the door and Air Force went into the third period trailing 3-1.
The Falcons exploded out of the locker room, generating several chances to start the third period. They kept the pressure well into the period, getting great looks that didn't find the back of the net from senior forward Brendan Gibbons and junior defenseman Beau Janzig.
Air Force pulled the goalie late in the third period, but ultimately couldn't get anything past Lacelle. With 1:05 remaining, Parker Berge potted the empty netter from deep in his own end to seal a 4-1 Omaha victory.
Air Force outshot Omaha, 31-27, in the game. AF was 1-for-4 on the power play while Omaha was 0-for-1. Dominik Wasik made 23 saves for the Falcons. For Omaha, Dawson Cowen started the game and made 14 saves in 30 minutes. Lacelle played the final 30 minutes and made 14 saves.
"Omaha is a big, deep and fast team and they have the poise of a minor pro team," said head coach Frank Serratore. "That is typical of what things are going to look like this season. It is going to take a while to become the team we want to be. We had some good chances, and I thought their second goalie (Lacelle) was really sharp. We have to do a better job of converting the chances we had. This was good a test for us and we have a few things to polish up."
The Falcons open regular season play on Friday, Oct. 9, when they take on the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. at 6:05pm MT.
--30--
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
G
/ Men's Ice HockeyTeam Stats
OMA
AF
Shots
27
31
PPG
0
1
SHG
0
0
Penalties
5
2
Penalty Mins
10
4
Faceoffs Won
34
32
Game Leaders
+/-
-1
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
0
+/-
-1
Goals
0
Sh
4
A
1
+/-
0
Goals
0
Sh
2
A
1
+/-
-1
Goals
0
Sh
4
A
0
Monday, October 05
Sunday, October 04
Saturday, October 03
Wednesday, September 30
