Flight Adventure Park was filled with excitement as the University of South Carolina celebrated their 2023 AAU College Hockey Division I National Championship with a banner-raising ceremony on September 13, 2024. The Gamecocks, debuting new cream-colored jerseys adorned with their National Champions patch on the upper right chest, took on the University of Georgia in a thrilling season opener that ended in a 3-3 tie. Despite South Carolina's shootout win, College Hockey South protocols do not count shootouts in the final result.

Georgia came out firing in the first period, grabbing a 3-0 lead with goals from George Mesaros, Dylan Punzenberger, and Evan Moore. South Carolina looked shaken but quickly regrouped after the first intermission. In the second period, Marco Pineda gave the Gamecocks their first spark by scoring at 8:55, assisted by Benjamin Riccitelli.

The third period saw the Gamecocks mount a fierce comeback. John Riggins pulled South Carolina within one at 5:14, with assists from Tommy Marvin and Jake Puskar. Then, with under two minutes left in regulation, Pineda netted his second goal of the night to tie the game at 3-3, assisted by Marvin and Colin Reid.

Neither team managed to score in overtime, leading to a shootout where South Carolina emerged victorious. However, College Hockey South’s rules dictate that shootouts do not affect the official outcome, leaving the game recorded as a tie.

The contest saw physical play from both teams, with Georgia racking up 20 penalty minutes and South Carolina accumulating 14. Both teams’ goaltenders, Tyler Temoyan for South Carolina and Ryan Testino for Georgia, played the full 65 minutes and came up with critical saves throughout.

Final Score: South Carolina 3, Georgia 3 (OT, South Carolina wins in shootout)

Key Players:

• South Carolina: Marco Pineda (2 goals), John Riggins (1 goal)
• Georgia: George Mesaros (1 goal), Dylan Punzenberger (1 goal), Evan Moore (1 goal)

With their new jerseys and championship patch on display, South Carolina will take away valuable insights from this hard-fought draw. Georgia, meanwhile, showed they can compete with the best, earning a well-deserved point to start the season.

Photo credit: @cockhockey on Instagram