Omaha vs. Arizona State: Dec. 19-20, 2015 at Baxter Arena

The UNO Mavericks are back home at Baxter Arena after a bye week. Student-athletes are finished with finals, and before they head home to see their families for Christmas break, they're taking on a non-conference foe, Arizona State, in a Saturday night/Sunday afternoon series. Arizona State is in its first full year in Division I play, but is not to be overlooked. The Mavs are undefeated at Baxter Arena this season, and we want to end the first half of the season strong.

The biggest news during the bye week was the sudden, unexpected departure of forward Avery Peterson. A highly touted recruit (and Mr. Hockey), Peterson had been experiencing a scoring drought his sophomore season. While we haven't heard an official reason for his departure, sources say it's related to his brother's illness, as outlined in this article from a few years ago. Sounds like Avery wants to be closer to home. While his departure is a huge loss for the Mavs, we can't fault him for putting #FamilyFirst.

Here's a roundup of other stories leading up to the series (and game coverage articles will be added later).

Omaha World-Herald story about Avery Peterson's departure:
http://www.omaha.com/uno/avery-peterson-s-departure-shocks-uno-teammates/article_7db8097c-a720-5125-8ca4-58e892c3da88.html

OMavs series preview:
http://www.omavs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31400&ATCLID=210592595

OMavs Saturday night game recap:
http://www.omavs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31400&ATCLID=210593761

Notable quote:

The Mavericks earned their 13th win of the season, the most before the end of December in school history, to improve to 13-3-1 overall.  They are now 7-0-0 at Baxter Arena this season and 9-0-0 in non-conference games with a Sunday 2:07 p.m. rematch pending.  It will be their last non-conference game of the year.

Omaha World-Herald article after Saturday's win -- with THREE power play goals!
http://www.omaha.com/uno/mavericks-becoming-a-force-with-power-play/article_ebf2b5fc-a6c7-11e5-855f-af7e13ca39de.html

Omaha World-Herald article about Sunday's sweep!
http://www.omaha.com/uno/uno-caps-perfect-nonconference-with-sweep-of-arizona-state/article_1228a15a-a768-11e5-a899-2b2ccfca1ff7.html

#UNBEATENATBAXTERARENA

Tickets:
Tickets are plentiful for the matchup, due to the holiday season. You can find tickets for sale in the Mavpuck group or on Ticket Express' website.

TV Coverage:
Both games will be available on NCHC.tv.

Radio Coverage:
The games will be broadcast on 1180 AM (1180 The Zone 2). Dave Ahlers will provide radio play-by-play and Terry Leahy will provide color commentary. The First National Bank Pre-Game Show begins at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday night and at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.