Bowling Green State University
MICHIGAN STATE
Comeback Falls Short As Falcons Lose 6-4 to Michigan State
December 04, 2004 | Ice Hockey
Dec. 4, 2004
Bowling Green, Ohio - A second period rally by Bowling Green on Saturday wasn't enough at visiting Michigan State scored two third period goals to post a 6-4 victory over the Falcons at the BGSU Ice Arena in front of 3,582.
"We got behind early and we were able to stay right with it," said BGSU Coach Scott Paluch. "I was proud of the guys for getting ourselves back in it. The crowd was outstanding. They kind of helped us get back in it at 4-3. It was a very winnable game at that point.
"Give credit to Michigan State. They made two plays in the third period, great shots, and put the game in a situation that was really tough. I was proud of the way our guys hung in there."
BGSU was without the services of senior goalie Jordan Sigalet who was feeling ill. Junior goalie Bob Frazee got just his second career start for the Falcons in net. The Spartans jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the first period before junior Jon Horrell started the second period in relief of Frazee.
"Literally, probably 15 minutes before the game Bobby Frazee has to get in there and play. Horrell was really solid in the second period. He made some tough saves in the second period and kept us in it."
Three Spartans recorded their first goals of the season, including Adam Nightingale who scored at 3:19 of the first period for an early 1-0 MSU lead. BGSU knotted the score at 1-1 thanks to a power-play goal by Rich Meloche, his sixth goal and fifth power-play tally of the season. Brett Pilkington and Alex Foster assisted.
MSU then increased its lead to 3-1 with power-play goals from Drew Miller (13:09) and David Booth (15:20) in the first period. MSU held a slim 11-9 shot advantage in the opening 20 minutes.
Kevin Estrada raised the lead to 4-1 at 14:47 of the second period before freshman Derek Whitmore scored two goals at 15:59 and 19:05 to move the Falcons to within one goal, 4-3, after two periods. Horrell stopped 13 of 14 shots faced in the second period.
However, Tyler Howell (PPG, 00:41) and Chris Snavely (7:30) moved the lead back to three goals, 6-3, early in the third period. Freshman Michael Hodgson tallied a power-play goal at 10:51 of the third period to bring the Falcons back to within striking distance, but they could not get any closer.
Pilkington ended with a career-high four assists in the game while Foster added a career-high three helpers. Jonathan Sigalet also had an assist.
"It's tough when a team jumps out ahead," said Whitmore. "It showed a lot of character from our guys tonight and it's something we can build off of. We just have a lot of guys that don't quit."
MSU was 3-for-8 on the power play while BGSU finished 2-for-9. MSU held a 38-24 shot advantage for the game.
BGSU falls to 8-4-2 overall and 5-3-2 in the CCHA. MSU improves to 7-8-1 overall and 4-6-0 in the league. The Falcons have a home-and-home series against nationally-ranked Michigan next weekend. BGSU travels to Ann Arbor on Friday, Dec. 10 (7:35 p.m.), before hosting the Wolverines on Saturday, Dec. 11 (7:05 p.m.).
