ST. LOUIS PARK, Minn. -- Matt Kocourek scored twice while posting a career-best five-point effort as Benilde-St. Margaret's cruised to a 10-2 win over Rochester Lourdes.
The win was the Red Knights' third in a row and fourth in five games in 2018 after starting the season 3-6-1.
The victory came on the strength of BSM's second line turning in an outstanding offensive effort as Kocourek, Jett Johnson and Jordan Roo combined for four goals and 12 points.
The trio was responsible for the Red Knights taking a 3-0 lead as Kocourek scored while setting up Roo's first goal of the season, after the senior winger missed four games due to injury.
Kocourek second goal, with three minutes, 57 seconds remaining in the first period, was followed just 15 seconds later by BSM's third line getting involved in the scoring as James Norkosky took a pass from Ian Bahr, skated in off the right boards and scored from the faceoff circle.
Bahr then scored 51 seconds later and only Jared Anderson's power-play goal with one minute remaining prevented the hosts from taking a five-goal lead into the first intermission.
Jett Johnson had a career-best four-assist performance in BSM's win.
After a four-game absence, Jordan Roo returned to the Red Knight lineup and scored a pair of goals.
After putting up 19 shots on goal in the opening period, the Red Knights would do the same in the second period and they got on the scoreboard again when Peter Keese sent Charlie Warnert streaking up the ice and the sophomore center buried his first goal of the season 2:34 into the middle stanza.
After being kept off the scoresheet for over 23 minutes, BSM's top line accounted for the team's lone power-play goal of the night as Dylan Hoen's pass from the right circle found Joe Collins all alone in the left circle and he proceeded to notch his team-leading sixth power-play tally of the season.
Less than five minutes later Collins would collect his team-best 12th goal of the season when he poked home a Jerome Newhouse rebound and, with 3:58 to play in the period, Roo's second goal of the game, set up by Kocourek and Johnson, sent the teams into the intermission with the Red Knights enjoying a 9-1 lead.
Zach Angst got Lourdes back on the scoreboard, 2:15 into the final period but freshman Peter Keese got that goal back with 6:19 to play in the game for his first career goal to put the finishing touches on the victory.
With a 49-14 advantage in shots on goal, BSM had 15 of 18 skaters record shots on goal as well as getting 15 players on the scoresheet with points.
The Red Knights return to Metro West Conference play for the first of two home games next week when they host Bloomington Jefferson, Tuesday, beginning at 7 p.m. at the St. Louis Park Rec Center.
