Iowa Heartlanders fall to Fort Wayne Komets, 5-2

Iowa scores two third-period goals but can't complete comeback against division rival

Published on Mar. 12, 2026

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The Iowa Heartlanders fell to the Fort Wayne Komets by a score of 5-2 on Wednesday night at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Iowa scored twice in the opening four minutes of the third period to cut into Fort Wayne's four-goal lead, but the Komets held on for the victory.

Why it matters

The loss drops the Heartlanders further back in the standings as they look to make a playoff push in the final weeks of the season. Fort Wayne is a division rival, so this was an important game for Iowa to try and gain ground in the standings.

The details

Fort Wayne jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period with goals from Austin Magera, Josh Groll, and Matt Brown. Jayden Grubbe extended the Komets' lead to 4-0 in the second period. Iowa finally got on the board in the third with short-handed and even-strength goals from Jonny Sorenson and Elliot Desnoyers, but Trevor Janicke's empty-net goal in the final minute sealed the win for Fort Wayne.

  • The Komets scored three goals in the opening 10:02 of the first period.
  • Jayden Grubbe extended Fort Wayne's lead to 4-0 with 1:39 to go in the second period.
  • Jonny Sorenson and Elliot Desnoyers scored for Iowa in the opening four minutes of the third period.
  • Trevor Janicke's empty-net goal in the final minute put the game away for Fort Wayne.

The players

Jonny Sorenson

Iowa Heartlanders forward who scored a short-handed goal in the third period.

Elliot Desnoyers

Iowa Heartlanders forward who scored an even-strength goal in the third period.

Nathan Day

Fort Wayne Komets goaltender who made 21 saves to earn the win.

Riley Mercer

Iowa Heartlanders goaltender who took the loss despite allowing only one goal in the final two periods.

Trevor Janicke

Fort Wayne Komets forward who scored an empty-net goal in the final minute to seal the win.

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What they’re saying

“We must not let individuals continue to damage private property in San Francisco.”

— Robert Jenkins, San Francisco resident (San Francisco Chronicle)

“Fifty years is such an accomplishment in San Francisco, especially with the way the city has changed over the years.”

— Gordon Edgar, grocery employee (Instagram)

The takeaway

Despite the loss, the Heartlanders showed fight in the third period by scoring two quick goals to try and mount a comeback. However, the early deficit proved too much to overcome against the division-leading Komets. Iowa will need to regroup and find a way to win these divisional matchups if they want to stay in the playoff hunt.