Tung’s 36 Saves Lead Bison to 3–1 Win and Weekend Sweep of Iowa Heartlanders
Written by Noah Simon on November 18, 2025
IMAGE COURTESY OF BLOOMINGTON BISON MEDIA TEAM
NORMAL, Ill. – Callum Tung’s 36-save performance anchored the Bison on the road, powering Bloomington to a 3-1 win over the Iowa Heartlanders at Xtream Arena on Saturday and completing the sweep of the home-and-home series.
Much like Friday night’s contest, the Bison came out aggressive and in control.
A 5–1 shot advantage early in the first period set the tone, and just past the halfway mark, Parker Gavlas capitalized on the hot start by scoring his second goal in as many games.
He was assisted by Ilya Tsulygin and Kyle Jackson.
Tung closed out the opening frame with a stellar 17 saves, preserving the 1–0 lead heading into the first intermission.
The Heartlanders managed to hold off Bloomington briefly to start the second period, but the pressure quickly returned. Off a clean faceoff win from Eddie Matsushima, Shane Ott fed Kyle Jackson for a one-timer that extended the Bison lead to 2–0.
The goal also marked Bloomington’s first power-play score on the road this season.
Just over a minute later, Daniel Tedesco pushed the lead to three, finishing a setup from Brett Budgell and Mark Kaleinikovas to put Iowa in a deep hole only four minutes into the period.
Bloomington’s energy continued throughout the second, highlighted by Brandon Yeamans dropping the gloves against his former team, earning a five-minute fighting major midway through the frame.
Iowa finally broke through in the third period, scoring on a shorthanded counterattack from the near-side circle to make it 3–1. But Tung refused to let the Heartlanders pull any closer, turning away another high-danger chance early in the period to maintain the two-goal cushion.
Even with Iowa pulling its goaltender in the final minutes to create a one-man advantage, the Bison held strong defensively, shutting down every attempt at a comeback.
Tung’s outstanding night in net sealed Bloomington’s second straight 3–1 victory over the Heartlanders. The back-to-back wins move the Bison into eighth place in the Western Conference with 13 points.
Bloomington now hits the road for matchups with the Indy Fuel, Fort Wayne Komets, and Iowa Heartlanders before returning to Grossinger Motors Arena.
Their next home game is Friday, November 28th at 7 p.m., where the Bison will look to make it three straight wins over Iowa.
For all things Bloomington Bison, stay tuned to WZND.com.
