Tigers fall to X-Men 4-2

Photo courtesy of Chelsea Norris
Photo courtesy of Chelsea Norris

By Troy Langstaff

Logan Rieck led the way for the X-Men with a pair of first half goals en route to the 4-2 victory at Wickwire Field on Friday night.

Rieck's first goal came in the 16' minute after he received a long pass and fired a low shot into the net for the game's opening goal. 

The Tigers looked like the better team in the first 20 minutes but they couldn't capitalize on their chances. William Warren's (Windsor Junction, NS) fancy footwork created some opportunities for Dalhousie but StFX wouldn't give the Tigers an inch inside the box.

Rieck extended his team's lead to two in the 28' minute. Less than five minutes later Carson Ripoll fired a shot that was originally saved but a scramble ensued and the ball ended up just barely crossing the line. 

Luke Berryman (Halifax, NS) got one back for the black and gold squad before the end of the half with a screamer into the bottom left of the goal in the 40' minute.

StFX held the 3-1 lead at half.

The X-Men would quickly regain their three goal cushion with a close range shot by Jack Kennedy. 

Dalhousie refused to give up and was rewarded with a goal. An Ayoub Al-Arabi (Halifax, NS) free kick from just inside half was headed into the net by Bennett Kishchuk (Whitehorse, YT) in the 56' minute. 

The rest of the game was mostly controlled by a desperate Tigers team but the X-Men defense held strong for the 4-2 victory.

AUS SUBWAY Player of the Game was awarded to StFX's Logan Rieck with a pair of goals.

With the victory the X-Men clinch the #1 seed and will get a bye to the semi-finals of the AUS playoffs. They will play on Friday, November 5th.

The Tigers season concludes tomorrow at home against Cape Breton. They need a victory and a little bit of help in order to make the playoffs.