TORONTO - The Ryerson Rams failed to grab another divisional win against the Brock Badgers on Thursday night, falling 5-2. Brock entered the Mattamy Athletic Centre hungry for a win after the Rams tagged them for their first loss in ten games last Saturday.

The Badgers certainly came out to play, outshooting Ryerson 41-25 and forcing 16 penalty minutes while picking up a power play goal. Meanwhile, Hayden McCool (Whitby, Ont.) picked up his second goal in as many games and Jesse Barwell (Oakville, Ont.) also lit the lamp.

A back and forth first period left Brock with a 3-2 lead and a hefty 20-9 shot advantage.

In the opening five minutes, the Badgers held Ryerson shotless. Garrett Forrest (Ashburn, Va.) fought the fire until Connor Walters found the crease and slid it in. About four minutes later, Adam Berg's rush for Brock proved costly, giving the Rams a two goal deficit to contend with. 

On their first shot of the game, Hayden McCool stepped up and found the top corner, making it a one-goal game yet again. However, the pendulum continued to swing, and Tyler Rollo put one off the post and past Forrest, making it 3-1. Then, just a minute later, Adam Craievich's (Sarnia, Ont.) dish found Jesse Barwell, who quickly potted his third of the season.

Things quieted down in the second as neither team secured too many shots on goal early on. Forrest' s acrobatics in the crease were called upon later on in the period as he made a huge 2-on-1 pad stop. 

Brock's 30th shot of the game was a tap-in goal after Jared Marino was left with plenty of time in front. Despite a late-period power play, including a brief 5-on-3 for the Rams, the period ended 4-2 with Brock in front.   

The third saw more of the same action as the two squads went back and forth. Halfway through the period, Brock's Cosimo Fontana increased the Badgers' lead to three. His marker was a rare power play goal against, just the fifth of the season for Ryerson and their shutdown penalty kill.

The Rams only managed six shots in the final frame, and racked up some penalty minutes as tensions heightened. The final whistle served as a bit of relief for the Rams, who look to regroup on Saturday against Western in their last match of 2019. 

"They came out with a ton of energy. I think we got a little bit of what we deserved. We were just sloppy," said head coach Johnny Duco post-game. "It's a huge game Saturday for us. Never do you want to go on a two-game losing streak going into a break."  

The Rams hit the ice one more time in 2019 on Saturday against the Western Mustangs at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. Ryerson students can catch the action for free with their OneCard.