Chris Mangan

Payback may have been in the minds of the North Dakota State hockey team after their football team was upset by SDSU on Nov. 17 at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium.

The Bison got back at their border rivals at the Ice Larson Center on Nov. 30.

NDSU scored three first period goals, including two by Joe Omlid, Friday night at Larson Ice Center en route to a 7-4 victory over SDSU. Omlid completed the hat trick with 5:31 left in the second period before SDSU got on the board off a goal from Tyler VanLiere; SDSU never got closer than two the rest of the way. The Bison completed the sweep with a 6-4 victory.

“It is tough to get into a hole early, but we knew there was a lot of game left. We just had to go out and get the puck to the net,” junior forward Brian Hermanson said. “We did that, but the comeback came a little too late.”

Hockey can be added to the growing list of sports rivalries between the two schools. In the first game between the schools since the Dakota Marker football game, this one felt like a rivalry game as “both teams played hard and it got physical at times,” Hermanson said.

The Jacks are a very young team as 18 of the 23 players on the team are underclassmen. As the season is progressing, the underclassmen are starting to get the hang of college hockey.

“We are playing a lot of young players. I think that hurt us initially, but they are stepping up and playing well,” Hermanson said. “We have improved a lot since the beginning of the season.”

The team has growing optimism, as several key players from last year will be back next semester, including Roy Sando. “Look for the Jacks to come out strong in ’08,” Hermanson said.

The Jacks-4-10 on the year-return to action this weekend when they travel to Mankato.