After throttling the University of Oregon, 10-0, in the first game of the two-game series, the 14^th-ranked Grand Canyon University D1 Men's Hockey team overcame a gritty rally Saturday night to defeat the Ducks, 4-3, at AZ Ice Arcadia in Phoenix. The win not only sealed a sweep of the weekend (and four-game season) series, but was also the Lopes' 6^th straight win in the series. The victories also snapped GCU's three-game losing streak while edging the Lopes (11-10 overall, 6-6 WCHL) over the .500 mark overall.

Friday: GCU 10, Oregon 0

The Ducks walked into AZ Ice Arcadia Friday with newfound confidence after taking Arizona State University to overtime the night before in Tempe. The Lopes dispelled any notion of that happening early, battering Ducks' goalie Jadon Marinaro with 13 shots on goal in the game's first five minutes, cashing in goals from Braden Husby, Tommy Wardas and Nash Jacobsma along the way. Even more frustrating for UO was their lack of offense, since they couldn't manage a shot on goal themselves until midway through the first period. Triston Tabucol extended the Lopes' lead to four with two minutes left in the first frame, then GCU officially blew things open with four more scores in the second – two of them off the stick of senior forward Cam Neaylon. The flummoxed Oregon offense waved the white flag early, recording just a pair of shots on goal in the third period and 18 overall for the game. Conversely, the Lopes' 10 goals came on 65 total shots, with Neaylon and Owen Hanson leading the way with a pair of goals apiece, and Shawn Spring assisting on three scores.

Saturday: GCU 4, Oregon 3

After being finessed to death the previous night, the Ducks came out Saturday much more aggressive and ready to slam Lopes' players into the boards if necessary. It never resulted in the Lopes trailing in the game but kept the Ducks within range. In fact, the Lopes looked like they had solved the initial aggressiveness by scoring back-to-back goals in the middle of the first period (from Lopes' newcomer Jack Dolan as well as freshman Ben Oakland), but the potential rout was foiled when the Lopes took the foot off the proverbial gas late in the period, allowing Oregon to tie the game with goals in the final 103 seconds.

Penalties on both teams dominated the second period, which allowed both teams to use power plays for scores. Spring broke the tie five minutes into the game with a power-play score on assists from Hanson and Oakland, but a fresh GCU penalty gave the Ducks the power-play neutralizer just 49 seconds later on Nick Slayton's second goal of the contest. That goal seemed to wake the Lopes' defense up, clamping down on Ducks' opportunities in the Lopes' zone and holding UO scoreless for the final 33 minutes and 44 seconds of action. Overtime loomed over the third period, though – even after Jacobsma broke the tie with the eventual gamewinner four minutes into the period – but the Ducks' 13 shots on Lopes' goalie Jacob DeMoranville in the final frame found no clear openings as "Dee-mo" went 2-0 in goal, stopping 44 of 47 Ducks' shots over the two nights.

A trip to Boulder and a two-game series with the University of Colorado this coming weekend is what separates the Lopes from their next home weekend: two showdowns with archrival Arizona State University, who swept GCU in Tempe two weeks ago. Puck drop for the Lopes and Sun Devils on Thursday, February 6^th, is scheduled for 8PM, with the starting time the next night scheduled for 5:45PM. GCU students get in FREE with their student ID, and game tickets are available on the GCU Club Sports website.