The following story was prepared by NMU Sports Information

SAULT STE. MARIE — The Northern Michigan hockey team fell to Lake Superior State, 4-0, Saturday night at Taffy Abel Arena in the second game of the 2015-16 Cappo Cup series.
 

The Lakers scored four goals in the second period to down the Wildcats, who fall to 1-1-2 on the season with the loss. The teams are now tied in the Cappo Cup series with one win apiece. In the final minutes of the first period, Northern Michigan had two prime scoring opportunities but couldn't convert to take the lead.

Tic-tac-toe passing by Troy Loggins and John Siemer set Darren Nowick up with a clear look at the net in front, but Nick Kossoff was there to turn his shot aside.

On a power play at 19:32, Sami Salminen won the draw back to Brock Maschmeyer, who fired a shot on net. The puck was tipped in front and squirted past Kossoff, but the goal was disallowed when the puck was ruled to have been played with a high stick.

In the second period, after a lengthy stretch of time spent on special teams by both teams, Lake Superior State got on the score sheet when C.J. Hayes capitalized on an odd man rush at 8:30. After that, the Lakers seized the momentum and struck three more times in a six-minute window to effectively put the game out of reach.

Lake Superior State held a 27-19 edge in shots. Atte Tolvanen made 23 saves for the Wildcats while Kossoff made 19 saves to post his first career shutout.

The Wildcats open Western Collegiate Hockey Association play next weekend when they take on rival Michigan Tech in a home-and-home series.

At 7:14 in the first period, Northern Michigan took advantage of its first power play opportunity of the game to jump out to a 1-0 lead. After taking a Shane Sooth feed at the point, Brock Maschmeyer faked the pass and then rifled a shot into the back of the net through a Sami Salminen screen.

Minutes later, at 11:29, the Wildcats netted a shorthanded marker to extend their lead to 2-0. Darren Nowick stripped the puck from a Laker at the point and sent it ahead to Gerard Hanson. Hanson carried it down the ice and gave it back to a streaking Nowick in front, who slipped it by Gordon Defiel.

Early in the second period, the Lakers capitalized on back-to-back man advantages to even the score at two apiece.

But Northern Michigan responded to regain the lead at 10:48 when Nowick won a face off in the Lake Superior State end back to Jordan Klimek, who shuffled it over to Barrett Kaib for the shot. Kaib's shot made it through traffic and past Defiel. Payne scored the first of his three goals with less than two minutes remaining in the second frame, coming up with the puck in a goal mouth scramble and jamming it past Defiel.

Payne found the score sheet again early in the third period, at the 6:08 mark. After taking the puck the length of the ice, he snapped a shot off Defiel's blocker, which ricocheted off the pipe and in. The sophomore capped the scoring with 52 seconds left on the clock with a power play marker.