The South Carolina hockey team traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, this weekend to compete in the SECHC tournament. The Gamecocks were the No. 5 seed entering the tournament and would begin by playing No. 4 Florida.
South Carolina was coming off of a huge sweep of UNC Wilmington the week before, which they were hoping would create momentum moving forward. They got off to a fast start Friday night, with Brian Sohr scoring early in the first period.
Staying out of the penalty box has been a big issue for the Gamecocks all year, and that proved true in Friday’s contest. Florida took advantage of this weakness and got their first goal of the day on their first power play. This led to three additional unanswered goals as the Gamecocks were suddenly down 4-2 by the end of the first period.
The two teams had an intense battle, but Florida’s offensive power was too much for the Gamecocks to overcome as they continuously struggled to stop the puck. Florida went on to claim the quarterfinal win, 7-3, and South Carolina was sent to a consolation game.
The Gamecocks faced the No. 6 Auburn Tigers Saturday morning to see who would skate away with 5th place. They came out strong again; this time Kyle Ware scored early. Ware had a phenomenal game, finishing with a hat trick and one assist.
The offense exploded from there, from both benches, resulting in a 12-6 Gamecock victory. Ian Schneider also recorded a hat trick in the win, while Eric Patterson passed Andrew Swint for the South Carolina goals record with 62 after scoring two on Saturday.
South Carolina is now waiting to see if they will qualify for the ACHA South Regionals, which will take place later this month.