ROMEOVILLE, Ill. -- The University of Michigan-Dearborn men's ice hockey team closed out a gauntlet of a weekend by playing three games in three days against some of the best teams the ACHA has to offer. The Wolverines went 1-2 at the ACHA Chicago Classic, closing the trip with a 5-3 win over Illinois State late on Sunday night.
The Wolverines jumped on the Redbirds, scoring two goals in the opening period. Dawson Nelson started the scoring at 2:59 as he connected with Carter Allen and Will Barrett for the game's first goal. 10 minutes later, Brenden Paden got on the scoresheet from a Blake Petterle assist. Illinois State would get one back before the end of the period as the two teams went into the first intermission with the Wolverines up 2-1.
Zak Januszkowski expanded the Wolverine's lead in the second when he scored a shorthanded goal at 5:06 to give the Wolverines a 3-1 advantage. Justin Renzi and Joey Cibor cleaned up any possibility of a Redbird comeback as they each scored in the third period to make it a 5-3 final.
Drew Adams started in net for the Wolverines, earning the win. Isaac Kolasa came in relief of Adams and made 22 saves in the final two periods.
