TORONTO – Jonathan Laser and Noah Schwartz scored third period goals to lead the Mustangs to a comeback win over Toronto at Varsity Arena Friday night.
 
The victory, combined with York's overtime loss to Ryerson, puts Western just two points back of the division-leading Lions. Toronto entered with a chance to slide further into playoff position in the West but remain two points back of Laurier for seventh.
 
Schwartz finished with a three-point night after being held off the scoresheet against York last week for just the second time this season. His second goal, which came seven minutes into the third period, was his third game-winning marker in just 10 appearances.
 
Greg Dodds got the start for Western and turned aside 25 shots for his fourth victory in a row and tenth of the season. His counterpart, Andrew Hunt, faced 30 shots in the loss—his sixth of the year. He stopped a game-high 14 in the second, his strongest period of the night.
 
Toronto opened the scoring four and a half minutes into the first with an unassisted goal from Matthew Campagna. Andrew Goldberg got Western on the board just over eight minutes later, burying a feed from fellow rookie Ray Huether. Huether finished with two assists for his seventh multi-point performance of the season.
 
Aidan Wallace and Connor Cleverley added markers eight minutes apart in the second period to give the Varsity Blues a 3-1 advantage. Toronto managed just five shots in the frame compared to Western's 14, but they made sure to capitalize on the chances they did get.
 
Western's eventual comeback didn't start until the end of the second period, when Schwartz netted his first of the night from Matt Marantz and Stephen Sanza. Marantz, who has been absent for the last four games, made an immediate impact in his return from injury, picking up two helpers to stretch his team-leading point total to 26.
 
It didn't take long for the Mustangs to get back their momentum in the final frame. Laser tied the game two minutes into the period before Schwartz scored the winner exactly five minutes later. Connor Chartier and David Corrente registered the primary assists on the markers, which helped Western salvage a game that looked like it might get out of reach.
 
Western's power play, which struggled against the Lions last week, gave them a much-needed boost on Friday. It was Schwartz who broke through with the man advantage, as his second period goal stood as the Mustangs' first and only power play marker of the night. Toronto's power play, on the other hand, was not able to solve the purple and white penalty kill.
 
NOTES: Shaun Furlong and Spenser Cobbold were both held off the scoresheet, meaning their five-game point streaks have come to an end. The two are tied for second on the team in points with 20 apiece… Huether's two assists snapped a seven-game scoreless drought for the offensive-oriented rookie, who was on fire through the first half of the season but hadn't found the scoresheet in 2016. He also has 20 points this season… Goldberg now leads the team in goals with nine through the first 23 games of his OUA career.