On Friday night, the UCSD Tritons faced the UC Davis Aggies in their annual exhibition UC matchup. The Tritons had a rougher start than they expected. Although Jonathan Adrian (#21) scored the first goal of the game, a defensive zone fumble in the last minute of the first period resulted in an Aggies goal and a tied game. Although this blunder deflated UCSD a little bit, they were able to recover and attack in the second period.

In the second, again, Jonathan Adrian (#21), a rising star for UCSD, scored another goal for the Tritons, followed by a goal from sophomore Ken Rolnick (#22), his first of the season. Before the end of the second period, Jonathan Adrian (#21) scored his third of the game on the Power Play after a Davis penalty, completing a "hat trick", much to the happiness of his teammates and the fans in the bleachers. The Aggies responded with a goal of their own, but the Tritons still went into the third with a comfortable lead, ready to put away the game.

The third period was more of the same, with a goal from junior Alex Nakashima (#9) and another goal from Ken Rolnick (#22); the third and final goal by Davis did not put enough of a dent into the UCSD lead. Goaltender Matthew Mahlow put on yet another admirable performance in net, keeping the Aggies at bay.

This game marked many successes for the UCSD Tritons. First, this was their second win in a row, a streak they hope to continue as they start their first league games in the Bay Area in two weeks. Also, the Tritons had zero penalties, which is very uncommon in the ACHA league and even more unusual given the formidable reputation UCSD holds. Finally, there were individual successes as well, including from the winner of the "game puck", a tradition in ice hockey given to the MVP of a won game. Vice President Peter Dukakis said in the locker room after the game regarding the game puck, "We all know who this is going to," and, naturally, Jonathan Adrian (#21) was awarded the honor for his tremendous efforts.

After celebrating with some In-N-Out, the members of the UCSD Ice Hockey Team are resting up. Next, they will travel in two weeks for their first 2025-2026 trip, going to San Jose and Oakland from October 23rd to 26th, and playing San Jose State University and UC Berkeley. With two wins under their belt, they will continue to brush up their skills in on-ice and off-ice training and travel ready to rock!