LINCOLN, NE. — The Lincoln Stars (4-10-1-0) dropped a close contest at home with a 2-1 loss to the Waterloo Black Hawks.

Following a silent first period, Waterloo grabbed the opening tally 8:17 into the second frame on Cody Sokol's eighth goal of the campaign. The Black Hawks doubled their cushion 8:15 into the final period when Caleb Deanovich solved the defense, set up by James Russell and Camden Langfeld.

Lincoln refused to back down and answered late in regulation. Operating with an extra skater, Jack Holland netted his second goal of the year on the man advantage at 17:15, with help from Jordan Johnson and Henry Steele to trim the margin to one.

The home squad generated heavy pressure down the stretch, but the equalizer remained elusive.

Between the pipes, Lukas Stuhrmann turned away 32 of 34 attempts for the Stars, whereas Charlie Menard denied 28 of 29 shots to secure the win for Waterloo.

Lincoln ended the night 1-for-6 with the man advantage while blanking Waterloo on three penalty kills, finishing with a 29-28 edge in shots on goal.

About the Stars: The Lincoln Stars are a Tier I junior ice hockey team competing in the Western Conference of the United States Hockey League. Established in 1996, the Stars play their home games at the Ice Box in Lincoln, Nebraska, and have won four Anderson Cups and two Clark Cups in franchise history. The USHL is the top junior hockey league in the United States and a leading development path to NCAA Division I hockey and the NHL.