When the Lincoln Stars needed its navigator, captain Mason Marcellus grabbed the wheel.
With two of the USHL's biggest stars out for Sunday's decisive Game 3 of USHL Western Conference semifinals, Marcellus scored to break a 1-1 tie 2:34 into the third period to help send the Stars to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2012 with a 3-1 victory over the Black Hawks in Waterloo, Iowa.
Lincoln was without alternate captain Doug Grimes, while Waterloo was missing captain Garrett Schifsky following suspensions after Waterloo's 6-1 victory Saturday.
It is the first time Lincoln has defeated Waterloo in the postseason, with the Black Hawks knocking Lincoln out of its last three postseason appearances, including a 2-1 series loss in the 2022 playoffs.
“(Marcellus) was unbelievable,” Lincoln head coach Rocky Russo said. “From the second he heard Doug was suspended … it was like he put his cape on and said, 'I'm not done playing with Doug. We're not done playing with Doug. We are getting another crack,' and he was the catalyst today. … Mason was the one leading the charge.”
People are also reading…
Both Friday and Saturday contests were won by the team that scored first, and Sunday was no different. Jack Larrigan struck 11:42 into the first period to put Lincoln ahead 1-0 on an assist from Marcellus.
The Lincoln captain intercepted a Waterloo pass in the Stars defensive zone to start a 3-on-1 rush before sliding the puck to Larrigan at the final second.
“(Larrigan) is moving his feet; moving his feet and playing with confidence,” Russo said. “He's not trying to do more than he has to, he's making smart decisions with the puck and keeping things moving north. … He's really come a long way in the two years we've had him. I think he is just scratching the surface of what he is capable of.”
And with a 2-1 lead in the final minutes of Lincoln's biggest game in nearly a decade, Daniel Sambuco had an empty-net goal against his former USHL team. Sambuco played 21 games with Waterloo in 2021-22 before being let go by the Black Hawks.
“I asked (Sambuco) how good did that feel and he had some choice words, but he obviously got cut by this team last year,” Russo said. “We added him and what an important piece he's been for our club, and he is such a gritty player. He's got so much sandpaper to his game and he works so hard and competes. Talk about a guy that deserves to have that nail in the coffin right there.”
Lincoln will make its first Western Conference Final appearance since 2012 and against the Fargo Force in a best-of-five series beginning Friday in Fargo, North Dakota. Fargo finished a 2-0 series victory over Tri-City on Saturday.