Escanaba junior Owen LaBonte (left) celebrates after scoring a goal with Nolan Bink against Marquette on Nov. 22, 2024 at the Wells Sports Complex. LaBonte’s goal proved to be the game winner in a 3-1 victory over the Sentinels. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

WELLS — For nine long, grueling years, Escanaba hockey had a thorn in its side. Its name was Marquette.

The Eskymos have fallen short against the Sentinels time and time again. It’s the one mountain the orange and black couldn’t reach the top of.

Until Friday night.

Behind two third period goals from junior Owen LaBonte and Cale Carter the Eskymos slayed Marquette with a 3-1 win.

“It’s a complete game by the Eskymos tonight,” Esky coach Andy Johnson said. “The boys worked hard. They earned it.”

With a shade over five minutes into the third period Esky set up shop in Marquette’s zone. Junior defenseman Nolan Bink found an open LaBonte. He fired at the net, got a deflection from a Sentinels defender and watched the biscuit land in the back of the net.

The Eskymos led 2-1 with 11:44 to go.

The orange and black didn’t stop there.

Less than two minutes after LaBonte’s goal, Bink and Carter found themselves in a 2-on-1 scenario in front of Marquette’s net.

Bink slid the puck across the ice to a wide-open Carter, who buried the one-time pass to take a 3-1 lead. Not only did it give Esky a pivotal two-goal advantage, but it put the metaphorical icing on the cake on Carter’s 18th birthday.

Marquette didn’t fade away. In fact, the Sentinels had multiple chances late in the third period.

Esky junior Keagan Braun was sent to the penalty box for slashing, putting the Sentinels on the power play with 3:45 to go. The Eskymos penalty kill unit proved to be too much, slamming the door shut before returning to full strength with 1:45 remaining and an empty Marquette net.

But 22 seconds later Esky junior Carson Hughes was sent to the sin bin for tripping. If Esky wanted to snap its losing streak against Marquette, it needed to survive 83 seconds of 6-on-4 hockey.

The Sentinels got off one quality chance, but junior goalie Cully Hayes, who stopped 26 of 27 shots, snagged the shot with his glove. Marquette failed to get off another scoring chance as the Eskymos earned the win.

Esky drew first blood when Graham Johnson scored with an assist from freshman Nick Martinson for a 1-0 leave. The Sentinels got the equalizer when a turnover in the Esky zone led to Braydon O’Dovero scoring on a 1-on-1 chance against Hayes.

But something shifted after the first intermission. The Eskymos began to wear down Marquette, firing 11 of the period’s first 12 shots while outshooting the visitors 16-6.

“When we were talking to them in the locker room (between the first and second periods) we were telling them that our game was working,” Andy Johnson said. “We just had to keep working hard and good things would come.”

The Eskymos return to action with a home game at 5 p.m. Wednesday against Jeffers before tripping over the bridge for the TCW Thanksgiving Nov. 29 and 30.