The Portage College Voyageurs lost 7-1 to the visiting Augustana Vikings in their exhibition season home-opener at the Bold Center on Friday but bounced back to defeat the Vikings 5-4 the following day in Camrose.
During Friday’s game, Voyageurs’ starting goalie Alex Brousseau and the team’s defensive line were kept busy throughout the first period fending off a relentless Vikings’ onslaught. Brousseau played the first half of the game, facing 25 shots, with three getting past. It was a 3-1 game for the Vikings when netminder Luke Hall took over for the second half of play. He faced 15 shots, with four getting past the goal line. On the offensive side, the Voyageurs didn’t offer up much, testing the Vikings’ netminder just 20 times.
Saturday’s game on Vikings home ice in Camrose saw a re-charged Voyageurs squad. The team challenged the Vikings' defence in a back-and-forth game. It was 2-2 after the first, with Hall back in net for the Voyageurs. The battle continued in the second, with the teams tied at four going into the final period. The eventual game-winner was notched by Voyageurs’ forward Blake Astorino. On the scoreboard it was a multi-point night for Portage’s Xavier Halterman with a goal and three assists, as well as Blake Astorino with two goals, and Shaye Sommerfeld with a goal and two assists.
In the net, Hall faced 15 shots in the first half of the game and alternate goalie Jake Manners faced 16 shots.
The Voyageurs next play Briercrest College in back-to-back home games on Bold Center ice to start the regular season on October 13 and 14. The Friday night games starts at 7pm. Saturday’s matinee game gets going at 1 p.m.