THUNDER BAY, Ont - In front of 1,841 Lakehead fans, the Rams took game one of the OUA West quarter-finals series 4-1 on Wednesday night.

Adam Craievich (Sarnia, Ont.) deflected the game-winner off of Andrew Mullen's (Toronto) shot. Patrick Fellows (Mississauga, Ont.) opened the scoring while Jacob Kamps (Pickering, Ont.) and Matt Mistele (Whitby, Ont.) added insurance markers. Garrett Forrest (Ashburn, Va.) had a stellar night by stopping 29 while the Rams squad put 44 shots on goal themselves. 

Matt Nosella (Etobicoke, Ont.) went off for boarding two minutes into the game, but a stifling penalty kill unit kept the Thunderwolves from getting deep into the Rams' zone. The Ryerson penalty kill would go 4-for-4 on the night. 

With 11 and a half to go in the first, Lakehead's Tomas Soustal got called for slashing. The Rams held possession off the faceoff but had a scrum snuffed out by Lakehead's Brock Aiken in net. Later on the man-advantage, a Jesse Barwell (Oakville, Ont.) shot bounced to the left wing, leaving an open net for Fellows. The playmaker made no mistake, burying the bouncing puck to break the ice, making it 1-0. 

With the floodgates broken, Ryerson made it 3-0 within six minutes of Fellows' marker. Craievich struck next, deflecting a Mullen point shot. Kamps completed the trifecta, sneaking a shot past Aiken with Brandon Glover (London, Ont.) securing the assist. Kamps' tally was his first goal in a Rams uniform, while Glover, Craievich, and Mullen all picked up their first postseason OUA points. 

The Rams' 3-0 cushion held up after the first thanks to a flexible pad stop by Forrest. Ryerson put up 16 shots after 20 minutes compared to Lakehead's nine shots on goal. 

Early in the second, the Rams killed off a lingering Mathew Santos (Toronto) minor to stay up by three. Closer to halfway through the frame, Lakehead turned up their pressure and pinned Ryerson in their zone. The fatigued Rams squad left Tomas Soustal alone in front, who buried a feed from Kyle Auger past Forrest to make it 3-1. 

With the momentum swinging in Lakehead's favour, Ryerson's penalty kill was forced to make a third and fourth trip out after a Jared Walsh (Toronto) hooking call and a Mullen holding minor. Ryerson was able to kill off the Walsh call, and a darting Fellows drew a Lakehead penalty ending the Mullen penalty kill. In a post-whistle scrum, Devon Paliani (LaSalle, Ont.) was assessed four penalty minutes, making things 4-on-4. Forrest was called upon with the new open ice, but the score stayed locked at 3-1 after forty. 

Ryerson started the third on a power play but failed to pad their lead despite some keen passes by Matt Mistele. 

A few minutes later, a long pass fell on Barwell's stick alone in front, but a lunging Aiken was up to the task. Barwell was robbed again at the halfway mark of the period as Aiken snatched up his slot shot with his glove. 

With eight minutes to go, Santos swiped the puck while forechecking and slid it to Mistele alone in front. The captain made a quick backhand-forehand move before lifting it past Aiken for an insurance marker. 

Four minutes after Mistele's marker, Lakehead's Scott Gall was assessed a game misconduct and five-minute major for head contact. The Rams finished the game on the man-advantage with the final score at 4-1. 

The Rams head back to Mattamy Home Ice on Saturday, February 15 as they look to advance to the West semifinals. Puck drop is set for 7:15 p.m. in game two.