Dec. 20, 2003

Box Score

The Minnesota State, Mankato Mavericks overcame a 7-1 deficit and scored seven straight goals to defeat fifth-ranked Denver 8-7 tonight before 3,650 fans at Midwest Wireless Civic Center. Senior Shane Joseph scored three goals to lead Minnesota State to the wild victory. The Mavericks take three WCHA points from the Pioneers and improve their record to 4-9-3 overall and 3-7-2 in WCHA play. Denver falls to 11-6-3 overall and 5-6-3 in league play.

Denver staked itself to 6-1 lead after the first period and Jeff Drummond's goal at 7:53 of the second period gave the team a 7-1 lead. The Pioneers appeared to be heading to an easy victory, but Minnesota State erupted for four straight second-period goals to cut Denver's lead to 7-5 heading into the final stanza. The Mavericks used a five-minute major penalty on Laatsch to score three power-play goals.

A shorthanded goal by Adam Gerlach at 8:25 of the third period cut Denver's lead to 7-6 and Brad Thompson's goal tied it at 14:49. Joseph scored the game-winning goal at 15:51 and the Mavericks held off the Pioneers to gain the victory.

Sophomore Gabe Gauthier (Buena Park, Calif.) had two goals and two assists for his first career four-point game as a Pioneer. Jeff Drummond (Leduc, Alberta) added two goals, while Kevin Ulanski (Madison, Wis.), Jon Foster (Suffern, N.Y.) and Matt Laatsch (Lakeville, Minn.) added goals in Denver's biggest offensive output of the season. Connor James (Calgary, Alberta) added two assists for Denver.

Denver returns to action next weekend as they host the Wells Fargo Denver Cup. The Pioneers will play Niagara on Saturday, Dec. 27. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. MT.