Former Trail Smoke Eater Travis St. Denis scored his first goal in NCAA action on the weekend, as the Quinnipiac University Bobcats opened its season Saturday with a 2-1 win over the Maine Black Bears.
The Trail native tied the game two minutes into the second period, knocking in a rebound off a Jeremy Langois attempt.
St. Denis, just off an RBC Cup run with Penticton Vees in April, is a freshman playing on a line with seniors Jordan Samuel-Thomas and Langois.
The line struck again for the winner, when Samuel-Thomas scored with 1:26 to play in the third.
By virtue of its win over number 15 ranked Maine, Quinnipiac broke into the top 20 USCHO poll this week in 18th spot.
In exhibition play, former Smoke Eater Scott Jacklin scored twice in Robert Morris’ 10-4 win over the CIS’s Wilfred Laurier University, (CIS) and Trail’s Steve Koshey scored a goal and added two assists in University of Alabama-Huntsville’s 12-1 demolition of Alabama.
St. Denis and the Bobcats will host Jacklin and Robert Morris this weekend in a pair of games Friday and Saturday in Hamden, Conn.
Ella Matteucci and Clarkson University also won its opening matchups with 1-0 and 3-1 wins over St. Lawrence on the weekend.