Notables
-Bruce earned his first collegiate hat trick with a goal in each period for the Saints
-CSS advances to the NCHA Semifinals for the ninth time in the last 10 seasons
-Vikings went 0-for-4 on power plays
-Nowakowski had three assists and has recorded at least one point in 11 of the last 13 games

DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) --  With a four goal second period, the No. 15 St. Scholastica men's hockey team earned a 6-2 victory over Lawrence University Wednesday night at the Mars Lakeview Arena to advance to the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) Harris Cup Semifinals.  

First Period
The Vikings held off the Saints for half of the first period, but a goaltender interference penalty by the Vikings put CSS on the power play, and with less than a minute elapsed in the 5-on-4 play, Keegan Bruce (Bellingham, Wash./Bellingham HS (Weyburn-SJHL) ) found the back of the net with help from Dylan Nowakowski (Calgary, Alberta/Centennial HS (Brooks-AJHL) ) to put the Saints up 1-0. St. Scholastica outshot Lawrence 13-8, but the score wouldn't change for the rest of the period.

Strong Second
Less than two minutes into the second, Bruce fired another shot past the Vikings' goaltender, assisted once more time by Nowakowski, to put a second point on the board for CSS. Just 14 seconds later, the Vikings' Josh Koepplinger, assisted by Ryan Eardley, got Lawrence on the board with a goal. Josh Hansen (Chilliwack, British Columbia/Unity Christian School (Chilliwack-BCHL) ), with help from Derek Sutliffe (Las Vegas, Nev./Odyssey Charter School (Langley Rivermen-BCHL) ) and Steven Phee (Balzac, Alberta/George McDougall HS (Canmore-AJHL) ), answered, followed quickly by a Kristofer McKinzie (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Marshall School (Minnesota Magicians-NAHL)) unassisted goal, his second of the season. Two minutes later, McKinzie successfully collected his third goal of the season on a penalty shot. At the second intermission, the four goal period for the Saints left them with a healthy lead at a score of 5-1.

Third Period
Koepplinger recorded his second goal of the night for Lawrence to start things off in the third period, but it was not enough to kick the Vikings into gear, despite two power plays in the period. A set of penalties put the Saints' Josh Hansen (Chilliwack, British Columbia/Unity Christian School (Chilliwack-BCHL) ) and the Vikings' Ryan Rumble into the penalty box with just over five minutes to play in the period. Then a too-many-players penalty put another of the Vikings' players in the box. The Saints took advantage of the extra man 18 seconds later, and Bruce put a third shot into the net for a hat trick, assisted by Brandon Millin (Port Moody, British Columbia/Heritage Woods HS (Notre Dame Hounds-SJHL) ) and his playmaker, Nowakowski, proving the offensive value of the Nowakowski/Bruce duo. Bruce's hat trick goal gave the game its final score of 6-2.

Goaltending
Tyler Bruggeman (North Mankato, Minn./Mankato West HS (Austin-NAHL) ) got the win for the Saints and saved 27 of the 29 shots he faced. Mattias Soderqvist covered the net for the Vikings and faced 37 shots on goal.

Up Next
The Saints will face No. 2 Adrian College (Mich.) in the NCHA Harris Cup Semifinals on Friday at 7 p.m (ET) in Michigan. The series will continue on Saturday at 3 p.m (ET).