KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The No. 9 University of Denver hockey team had six different goal scorers to defeat the No. 4-ranked Western Michigan Broncos 6-3 on Saturday night at Lawson Arena.
 
DU (6-3-1, 2-0-0 NCHC) has won three-straight games and earned its first two-game sweep of the season. The Pios won 3-1 against the defending national champion Broncos (5-5-0, 1-3-0 NCHC) on Friday.
 
"Loved our commitment to team-first hockey," said Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle. "The guys competed and battled all night. They're an excellent hockey team that will not let you off the hook at any moment. So if you take your foot off the gas, bad things will happen. I just liked that we continued to push, we weren't satisfied 3-0, 4-0. You know, they score, we just kept responding with them not going away. It's a really hard place to play and a really excellent team on the other side and feel fortunate and very proud of our team to get the sweep."
 
Rieger Lorenz, Eric Pohlkamp and James Reeder all had a goal and an assist each, while Kieran Cebrian Kristian Epperson and Sam Harris also tallied. Samu Salminen had a multi-point night as well with two helpers.
 
Freshman goaltender Quentin Miller recorded career-high saves for the second consecutive night, with him stopping 41-of-44 shots on Saturday.
 
After scoring three goals in the third period on Friday, the Pioneers tallied three times in the opening frame in the series finale. DU scored twice more in the second and Cebrian added a sixth on the night for the squad 4:03 into the third.
 
Western Michigan goaltender Hampton Slukynysky finished with 28 saves on 34 shots faced.
 
The Broncos went 2-for-5 on the power play, while the Pioneers were scoreless on their two man-advantage chances.
 
UP NEXT: Denver returns to Colorado for the start of a home-and-home set with the CC Tigers next weekend. The Pioneers host Colorado College on Friday at 7 p.m. MT at Magness Arena before traveling to Colorado Springs on Saturday for a 6 p.m. MT start. DU then continues the road swing on Nov. 22-22 at Arizona State.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Denver is now 29-16-2 all-time against Western Michigan and 11-11 at Lawson Arena, including a 6-2-0 mark in the last eight matchups in Kalamazoo.
• DU is on a season-long three-game winning streak and has not lost in regulation in its last four contests (3-1-0) dating back to Oct. 31 vs. Alaska Anchorage.
• Denver earned its first series sweep since March 7-8 against Colorado College and its first on the road since Feb. 21-22 at Miami.
• Rieger Lorenz scored his third career short-handed goal and DU's second of the season (Eric Pohlkamp, Oct. 10 vs. Bentley).
• Goaltender Quentin Miller made his seventh consecutive start and posted career highs for the second straight season with 41 saves on 44 shots faced. His 16 saves in the second were also the most in a period this season for Denver.
• Eric Pohlkamp tallied his team-leading seventh goal of the season and leads all NCAA defenseman in markers.
• Pohlkamp is on a three-game goals streak (3g/2a), tied for the longest of the season for a Pioneer and tied for the longest of his career (third time, last: March 8-16, 2024, 4g/2a, with Bemidji State).
• Pohlkamp's goal at 1:08 of the second period was the fastest to begin a period this season for the Pioneers.
• Kieran Cebrian has three goals in the last four games and has scored in back-to-back games for the second time in his career (Feb. 8-14, 2025).
• Boston Buckberger recorded his 50th career assist.
• The Pioneers have not lost in regulation in their last four games (3-1-0).
• DU killed off 13 straight penalties dating back Oct. 31 vs. Alaska Anchorage before WMU scored with the man advantage late in the second period. The 13 straight kills tied a season long (Oct. 10-31).
• Boston Buckberger, Eric Pohlkamp and James Reeder all finished with a +4 plus/minus ratings, tied for the most in a game this season by a Pioneer (Buckberger, Oct. 24 at Boston College).
• Samu Salminen won 13 faceoffs, tying a season high and tied for the most in a game this season.
• Brendan McMorrow had four shots on goal on Saturday for a season high.

 
 
GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
1:43 DU (1-0) – Kristian Epperson forced a turnover in the corner and then finished the play by tapping in Clarke Caswell's pass at the side of the crease.
9:29 DU (2-0) – SHG, Rieger Lorenz beat a Broncos player in a chase to the puck in the WMU zone and went backhand-to-forehand with it before depositing it past the goalie's right pad.
18:49 DU (3-0) – Sam Harris took a stretch pass from Garrett Brown and went top shelf with a shot from the left circle.
 
2nd Period
1:08 DU (4-0) – Eric Pohlkamp's shot from the top of the right circle got through traffic and found its way to the back of the net off passes by Boston Buckberger and James Reeder.
6:26 WMU (4-1) – Grady Gallatin tallied his first career goal off a deflection.
11:41 DU (5-1) – Samu Salminen fought for the puck on the forecheck and sent a pass from behind the goal line to James Reeder, who scored from the slot.
18:37 WMU (5-2) – PPG, Ty Henricks scored on a redirection off a shot by Sam Sjolund.
 
3rd Period
4:03 DU (6-2) – Rieger Lorenz forced a turnover in the WMU zone and Kieran Cebrian tallied on a rebound in the low slot off Lorenz's initial shot.
14:42 WMU (6-3) – PPG, Liam Valente scored on an outside shot.
 
 
QUOTABLES
Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle
On goaltender Quentin Miller: "He was excellent all night long, all weekend long. I think was a real calming force for the team and believing that they had him back there. Having that is critical to a team's success, so it's great to see him in a real tough environment play as well as he did and proud of his efforts."
 
On the team's defense: "Just being dialed in and trusting our game plan and sticking to our process, so the things that needed to be done and playing a certain way. I think our whole group—all six of them—and you know the game is connected so much, so a lot of our forwards are part of that too, as far as clearing out second chances and playing a big factor in our rush defense and trying to slow them down in one of the best elements of their (WMU) game. So total team effort, and I think that is what we're most proud of."
 
On Samu Salminen, Brendan McMorrow and the team's depth in offense: "We are a team that's going to have to score by committee, so I think it's the second time we've done this this with six or seven different goal scorers on the night. It's important to have depth and those two guys (Samu Salminen and Brendan McMorrow) certainly provide that. I thought 11's line, Saminein's, much better tonight, generating more looks, more possession time than they did last night. McMorrow's speed is a real factor in his success, and his ability to contribute to our team."

 
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