The Wilkes University men's ice hockey team opened the 2021-22 season with a 5-2 win over SUNY Fredonia in the first round of the Buffalo State Bengals Classic on Friday afternoon.
 
The Colonels now stand at 1-0 on the season.
 
Fredonia opened the scoring at 10:05 of the first period.
 
Nick Fea tied the score 40 seconds later with helpers from Nick Swain and Donald Flynn.
 
The Blue Devils retook the lead at 13:59 in the first as Wilkes trailed 2-1 heading into the first intermission.
 
The Colonels exploded in the second period as Dylan Kuipers [00:38, Phil Erickson, Lorenzo Marcolin], Flynn [4:44, Nick Godfrey, Michael Gurska], and Tyler Barrow [13:34, Joseph Johnson, Tyler Dill] all found the back of the net to give Wilkes a 4-2 lead after two.
 
Cole Jungwirth put the game away with his first collegiate goal at 11:35 of the third with assists from Barrow and Max Cocchi.
 
Michael Paterson-Jones was excellent in the crease for the Colonels, stopping 23-of-25 shots on the way to the victory.
 
Wilkes finished the game winning 38-of-66 chances in the face-off circle, led by an 11-for-16 showing by Flynn.
 
Swain, Marcolin, Johnson, and Cocchi all also registered the first points of their collegiate careers.
 
The Colonels now await the winner of the other semifinal matchup between Albertus Magnus and the host Buffalo State, with the Championship game starting at 7:30 p.m.