Unlucky number 29.

After not trailing at all throughout the first 111 minutes of its two-game series against the University of Arizona, the 13^th-ranked Grand Canyon University D1 Men's Hockey team couldn't withstand a final Wildcats' rally in the 3rd period Saturday to salvage a 5-4 victory over the Lopes in Tucson. UA completed the comeback when Dylan Walker scoring the gamewinner with 29 seconds left in the game. It forced the Lopes to settle for a split of the series after holding the 16^th-ranked Wildcats scoreless for the final 28 minutes of play Friday in a 2-1 win. The loss also prevented GCU from sweeping the four-game season series for the first time ever.

Friday: GCU 2, Arizona 1

It looked like this matchup between nationally ranked teams was a lopsided mismatch everywhere – except on the scoreboard. While both teams were missing key pieces of their starting lineups (due to players chosen for the U.S. Men's National University Team being in Italy for the Winter World University Games), it seemed to affect the Wildcats' offense more. Arizona managed just 13 shots on goal for the game against the stingy Lopes' defense, while GCU enjoyed a 40-shot barrage of their own. Still, despite GCU's Nash Jacobsma scoring just 74 seconds into the game, the Lopes couldn't shake loose of the 'Cats, who tied the game midway through the 2^nd period before GCU's Braden Husby gave the Lopes the lead back in the final two minutes of the frame. GCU fired a dozen shots in the final period to try to put the game away and couldn't find the net, but held UA to six meaningless shot attempts to hold on for the victory.

Shawn Spring assisted on both Lopes' goals, and GCU goalie Dmytro Kubrytskyi made 12 saves.

Saturday: Arizona 5, GCU 4

Determined to avoid another offensive drought, the Wildcats outshot GCU in the first two periods and for the game (28-25), but that didn't pay dividends until the 3^rd. The Lopes made two of their seven 1^st-period shots count, with Caden Henrikson and Owen Hanson finding the back of the net in the game's first nine minutes to stake the Lopes to the lead. UA's Jack Currle got the Wildcats on the board midway through the first period to cut the GCU lead in half heading to the first intermission. It was more of the same in the 2^nd, with the Lopes' jumping out to a 3-1 lead - thanks to Kolby Donovan's score midway through the period – but Kurrle kept the Wildcats close with his second goal of the night late in the period.

In the 3^rd, though, the Wildcats turned the tables on the Lopes, scoring the first two goals of the period within the first nine minutes to take their first lead of the weekend. The edge lasted until GCU's Tyler Misialek and Owen Lugowski set up Cam Neaylon for the tying score with 4:22 left, and it appeared the teams were destined for overtime until Walker's top-shelf gamewinner in the final minute.
 
Hanson had an assist to go along with his 5^th goal of the campaign, and Lopes' netminder Adler Hoagland recorded 23 saves in the loss.

The Lopes' tour of Arizona concludes this weekend with games Friday and Saturday night, January 17 and 18, in Tempe against archrival Arizona State University, and then the Lopes return to AZ Ice Arcadia for their first home matchups of the new year against the University of Oregon January 24 and 25. Puck drop that Friday is scheduled for 5:45PM. GCU students get in FREE with their student ID, and game tickets are available on the GCU Club Sports website.