The Muskegon Lumberjacks dominated the shots on goal battle for the second straight game, and this time they came away with a victory.
The Jacks broke their three-game losing streak with a much-needed 4-1 victory over the Youngstown Phantoms on Sunday in the final game of the weekend series at the Covelli Centre in Youngstown, Ohio.
The win allowed the Lumberjacks to hold their spot in third place in the USHL’s Eastern Conference. They came into the weekend leading fourth-place Youngstown by five points in the standings, but lost on Friday and Saturday, leaving them clinging to a one-point lead heading into Sunday’s finale.
Muskegon, 29-20-6 on the season, now has 64 points in the standings while Youngstown has 61.
The Lumberjacks had a 33-16 advantage in shots on goal, so it wasn’t surprising they won. But that’s never a guarantee, because the Jacks had a 37-18 advantage in shots on Saturday but still lost.
There was no scoring in the first period, and Youngstown took the lead almost a minute into the second with a goal by Justin Varner.
Muskegon answered with goals from Phil Tresca (4:06) and Jack Williams (16:49) and led 2-1 headed into the third period.
Quinn Hutson scored his 29th goal of the season at 6:43 of the third, then Parker Lindauer added an empty-netter late in the game, to close out the scoring.
Goalie Chase Clark got the win for Muskegon, stopping 15 of 16 shots.
The Lumberjacks will continue their nine-game road swing with a crazy schedule next weekend, playing in Dubuque on Friday night, Cedar Rapids on Saturday night and Green Bay on Sunday.
They will not return home until April 23, when they will host Chicago in the final game of the regular season.
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