WATERLOO, Ont. - The Laurier Golden Hawks closed their regular season on a high note Friday night with a 5-2 victory over the neighbouring Waterloo Warriors in their third game in the past four days. 

It was Senior Night on Friday, and the graduating class did not disappoint in their last regular season game in the purple and gold. The Golden Hawks celebrated nine soon-to-be graduates; four forwards and five defensemen.

Rookie Matthew Zebedee opened the scoring though, potting his fifth of the year for the Golden Hawks late in the first period, finishing a no-look feed from Sullivan Sparkes. 
 

??MHOCK P1 - A little tic-tac-toe and Matthew Zebedee gives the Golden Hawks the lead!

Golden Hawks | 1@WlooWarriors | 0#BattleofWaterloo #SoarAbove pic.twitter.com/1oFWctEwqo

— Laurier Golden Hawks (@WLUAthletics) February 11, 2023

Evan Benwell picked up his sixth of the year when he buried a rebound to extend the Laurier lead less than a minute into the second period. Benwell was electric in this one, with two breakaway opportunities. Both times, Waterloo's Dan Murphy made outstanding saves. 

Waterloo cut the score in half on an odd-man rush when Cole Fraser sent a shot past Christian Propp for his fourth of the year. 

Senior Caleb Rich re-established Laurier's two-goal lead halfway through the second period and extended it halfway through the third. He picked up the puck in the neutral zone and walked into the Warrior zone, ripping a shot past the blocker of Dan Murphy for his first. Rich one-timed a pass from fellow senior Adrian Nabuurs for his second on a 5-on-3. 
 

??MHOCK P2 - Caleb Rich balloons the lead back to two!

Golden Hawks | 3@WlooWarriors | 1#BattleofWaterloo #SoarAbove pic.twitter.com/QtxjS5pzDu

— Laurier Golden Hawks (@WLUAthletics) February 11, 2023

Rookie Colin Campbell extended the Laurier lead to 5-1 just a minute after Rich's powerplay goal when he went upstairs from a tight angle for his fifth of the season. Sparkes picked up his third assist of the night on the goal.
 

??MHOCK P3 - Colin Campbell goes shelf from a tight angle to put the Golden Hawks up by four!

Golden Hawks | 5@WlooWarriors | 1#BattleofWaterloo #SoarAbove pic.twitter.com/ftiRj4cEmf

— Laurier Golden Hawks (@WLUAthletics) February 11, 2023

Tate Popple scored for the Warriors in the dying minutes of the third frame and brought the game within three, but the Golden Hawks would hold on to defeat the Warriors 5-2, picking up a much-needed two points in their final regular season game. 

OUA All-Star Christian Propp was between the pipes again on Friday night. Propp faced 23 Warrior shots and stopped 21 of them. 

Laurier was 2 for 8 on the powerplay and 6 for 7 on the penalty kill. There were four penalties called through the first 40 minutes, but the third period was a penalty parade. Sixteen penalties were handed out by the referees in the third period alone, resulting in little 5-on-5 action in the final frame. Three 10-minute misconducts were given, shooting the total number of PIMs in the final frame to 50.

"It was a good game. We took care of everything on our end. I am so proud of these guys. They've worked so hard. I hope they get rewarded with a playoff birth," said Laurier's interim manager of men's hockey operations and head coach Kevin Forrest. 

When addressing the graduating class, Forrest said, "our defence has been our strength, along with Propper. Our goals against are middle of the pack and our penalty kill is top ten in the country. The fact that we are sitting in a playoff spot is what has kept us in the hunt all year."

Playoff Race

The Golden Hawks did everything they could to secure a playoff spot with Friday's win over the Waterloo Warriors. They wait upon York. If the Guelph Gryphons defeat the Lions on Saturday night, the Golden Hawks will have their ticket punched and face off against Forrest's former squad, the Brock Badgers. 

Plus + The Seniors

The seniors played their hearts out. Out of the nine grads, only eight dressed Friday night; Chayse Herrfort has been absent recently due to an infected appendix. Every last one of them looked stellar, but three of them scored two points each. 

Caleb Rich potted two goals, while Adrian Nabuurs and Matt McJannet picked up two assists on the night. Steven Maclean and Grayden Gottschalk found their way onto the score sheet in other ways during the third period in the onslaught of penalty calls in the third period. 

Rich has struggled to put points on the board since the new year started but came through big with three goals in back-to-back games.

"There was a little sense of urgency in them tonight, knowing that it could possibly be their last game," said Forrest. "I thought they played great and it's nice to see them get rewarded. 

Plus + The Rookies 

While the graduating class may be in their twilight, the rookies showed out tonight as they scored some pretty goals. Colin Campbell finished the season, leading the Golden Hawks rookies with 13 points in 24 games, and Matthew Zebedee followed him with five goals and seven points across a 15-game span.