WILKES-BARRE, PA (April 13, 2022) – The Monarchs started out hot, but they could not hold on as the high pace offense of the Cougars of Misericordia powered them to a 20-4 finish over King's.
 
After a little bit of back and forth action for the first 2 and a half minutes, the Cougars struck first as Michael Shuman put Misericordia up 1-0. The Monarchs immediately bounced back, as graduate student Gabe Vansuch found the back of the net less than a minute later. And again, Vansuch scored his second of the game just a minute and 20 seconds later, to give the Monarchs a 2-1 lead with 10:23 to go in the first quarter. The Cougars rallied back, scoring 7 more times before the end of the first quarter of play. Carson Venis led the Cougars in the first, scoring 4 goals to give Misericordia an 8-2 lead at the end of the first.
 
The second quarter was dominated by Misericordia. The Cougars took 16 shots in the quarter, and 7 of those shots made it past the goalie. Kyle Vandenberg was the leader in the second, scoring 3 goals as the Cougars extended their lead to 13 with the scoreboard reading 15-2.
 
The Cougars did not relent in the third quarter. Misericordia had 3 different goal scorers for 3 total goals in the third quarter. The Cougars pushed the game further out of reach for the Monarchs as they finished the quarter down 16 with the score being 18-2.
 
The Monarchs attempted to rally in the fourth quarter as they were able to net 2 goals. First year Ben Spencer found his 15^th of the season with 9:10 left to play in the game. Sophomore Ryan Barnes also added a tally for his 4^th of the season. The Cougars likewise found the back of the net twice in the final quarter. The Monarchs eventually fell 20-4 in today's MAC Freedom contest.
 
The Monarchs were led Vansuch's 2 goals as he snagged 2 groundballs as well. Sophomore Geno Casciello went 10-18 at the faceoff dot and picked up 5 groundballs along the way. Junior Matt Wall got the start in net and made 21 saves while picking up 11 groundballs.
 
The Cougars were led by Carson Venis as he finished up with 7 points on 5 goals and 2 assists. Kyle Vandenberg finished with 5 points on 4 goals and 1 assist and Robert Wagner finished with 1 goal and 5 assists for 6 points. Spencer Sundeberg led the Cougar defense with 3 caused turnovers and 2 groundballs. Matt Coates got the start and the win in net as he made 2 saves in just 30 minutes of play. The Cougars had 4 goalies combine for the other 30 minutes who made a combined 9 saves.
 
The Monarchs return to MAC Freedom action next Wednesday, April 20 for a 7 PM start in Doylestown where they face Delaware Valley.