By MEAGHAN UPDIKE
Saint Mary's Sports Information Intern
 
WINONA, Minn. — Despite a two-goal first period, the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's hockey team was not able to maintain the momentum in their final nonconference game of the season Thursday.
 
UW-Stout scored three unanswered goals in the second and third periods in dealing the Cardinals a 4-2 setback at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena.
 
"I thought we played very well for about a period and a half," said Saint Mary's coach Bill Moore. "We got into a style of play (dump-and-chase) that isn't suited to our skills, and that really hurt us."
 
Tyson Liverance (Burford, Ontario) opened the scoring for the Cardinals just four minutes into the first period, off assists from Jack and Tommy Stang (Mendota Heights, Minn.). 
 
The Blue Devils would answer with a power-play goal at 10:43, but Tommy Stang quickly answered with his team-leading seventh of the season to the Cardinals the one-goal lead heading into the locker room at the end of the first period.
 
Unfortunately for coach Moore and the Cardinals, Tommy Stang's late first-period goal would be their last.
 
And the Blue Devils were just getting warmed up.
 
UW-Stout scored two goals in the second period — one off the stick of Alex Nagel at 11:36 and the other by Austin Jackson just less than two minutes later — to take the lead for good.
 
The Blue Devils would cling to that one-goal lead until the 18:08 mark of the final frame, when Joe Kleven's clearing pass rolled the length of the ice and into the empty net to seal the UW-Stout victory.
 
Nick Nast (Oxnard, Calif.) made 25 saves in net for Saint Mary's, while Tommi Ahlgren made 22 saves  for UW-Stout.
 
The Cardinals (3-11-3) return to conference play next weekend, Jan. 25-26, with a home-and-home series against Gustavus. Saint Mary's will host the Gusties in a 7 p.m. contest at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena on Friday, before heading to Don Roberts Ice Rink in St. Peter, Minn., for Saturday's 7 p.m. rematch.