STEVENS POINT, Wis. — The Saint Mary's University men's hockey team scored first in its nonconference showdown against nationally ranked UW-Stevens Point Friday evening.
 
Unfortunately, that late first-period tally awakened a goal-scoring giant, as the 13th-ranked Pointers erupted for five of the next six goals — including two in the second period and three more in the third — as UW-Stevens Point dealt the Cardinals a 5-2 nonconference setback at K.B. Willett Arena.
 
It appeared as if the two teams would head into the first intermission engrossed in a scoreless stalemate, but Colin Tushie (Prior Lake, Minn.) had other ideas, finding the back of the net with 1:22 remaining in the opening stanza to give SMU a 1-0 lead.
 
The Pointers would score the only two goals of the second period — with Conor Witherspoon knotting the game at 1-1 at 6:46 of the middle frame and Fletcher Anderson give UW-SP its first lead of the game less than four minutes later — as UW-Stevens Point carried a 2-1 edge into the game's final 20 minutes.
 
And what a final 20 minutes it proved to be.
 
Andrew Poulias pushed the Pointers' lead to 3-1 just 3:21 into the third, but Cooper Smyl (Fairfield, Calif.) answered three minutes later, scoring his first goal as a Cardinal to get SMU back within one, 3-2.
 
That, however, would be as close as Saint Mary's would get, as the Pointers tacked on a pair of late goals — one by David Hill at 16:22 and the other off the stick of Mick Heneghan at 18:45 — to seal the 5-2 victory.
 
Matt Sankner (Pennington, N.J.) kicked out 37 of the Pointers' 42 shots on goal, while UW-SP goalie Alex Proctor recorded 24 saves.
 
The Cardinals (1-4-0 overall) are back on the road on Saturday, heading to Wessman Arena in Superior, Wis., for a 7 p.m. nonconference showdown with UW-Superior.
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