Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Get Back To League Action This Weekend Versus Ohio State
January 04, 2006 | Ice Hockey
Jan. 4, 2006
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio -
Week 11 Game Notes (20 pages)
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GAME #21 & #22
Ohio State vs. BGSU
Fri., January 6-7, 2006
7:05 p.m.
Value City Arena (Fri.) BGSU Ice Arena (Sat.)
RADIO: WBGU-FM (88.1) - Andy Evans
Pregame: Starts at 6:35
LAST MEETING: BGSU 2, Ohio State 2 (Oct. 21, 2005)
The Falcons, currently on a four game win streak, will play a home-and-home with #16 Ohio State this weekend. The Falcons travel to Columbus, Ohio, on Friday with the Buckeyes coming to town the following night. Both contests are set to begin at 7:05.
The Series With Ohio State
BGSU owns a 90-60-6 all-time series record with the Buckeyes. Already this year Ohio State upended the Falcons 7-2 inside the BGSU Ice Arena back on Oct. 20, with the two teams coming up with a 2-2 tie the following night in Columbus, Ohio. The tie with OSU snapped a 10-game losing streak versus the Buckeyes. Current OSU head coach John Markell played at BGSU from 1975-79, recording 102 goals, 133 assists and 235 points in 150 career games. Those numbers place him sixth all-time in BGSU scoring.
Falcons Shutout Colgate On Tuesday
Colgate 0, BGSU 4
The Falcons extended their win streak to four games after downing Colgate 4-0 on Tuesday night in Bowling Green, Ohio. Senior Jon Horrell recorded his first career shutout as a Falcon, stopping all 22 Raider shots, just 12 hours after being named CCHA Goalie of the Week. Freshman Brandon Svendsen extended his point streak to six games (3-5-8) after recording the first goal of the night. BG also got goals from Brett Pilkington, Alex Foster and Ryan Barnett. Sophomore blueliner Michael Hodgson matched his career-high with three helpers in the 4-0 win.
Falcons Capture UConn Holiday Classic Championship
BGSU 3, UMass 2 (Semi-finals)
BGSU 9, UConn 2 (Championship)
The Falcons captured the Toyota UConn Holiday Classic in Storrs, Conn., with a 3-2 victory over UMass in the semi-finals and a 9-2 victory over the Huskies in the championship match the following night. BGSU had four of the six players on the all-tournament team with Alex Foster (MVP), Jon Horrell, Jonathan Matsumoto, and Mike Nesdill all receiving tournament honors. For the tournament the Falcons averaged 6.0 goals per game, while surrendering only 2.0 goals per game. The four total goals given up was the best defensive effort over a weekend this season for the Brown and Orange. In the two games nine different Falcons picked up a goal, while 14 recorded at least one point. The Falcons were led by Alex Foster (0-4-4), Jonathan Matsumoto (3-0-3), Bryan Dobek (2-1-3), John Mazzei (2-1-3), Mike Nesdill (1-2-3), Brandon Svendsen (1-2-3), James Unger (1-2-3) and Brett Pilkington (0-3-3), but the star of the tournament was senior net-minder Jon Horrell. Horrell stopped 40-of-42 shots in the win over UMass and 30-of-31 the following night versus the Huskies. For the weekend he recorded a 1.56 gaa and a .959 save percentage.
Take Me To Your Leader
Sophomore Alex Foster is currently first in the country with 27 assists and tied for second with 33 overall points. He also ranks second with 1.35 helpers per game and third in the nation with 1.65 points per contest. Foster recorded eight points (0g, 8a) for the month of December after being named CCHA Offensive Player of the month in November. He is currently on a six-game point streak (1-8-9) and has scored a point in every game but three this season.
Falcons During The Four Game Win Streak
• Senior Jon Horrell is 4-0-0 with a 1.79 gaa and a .948 save percentage. He has stopped 127-of-134 shots faced the last four games.
• Eight Falcons are averaging at least one point a game in that span. They are lead by Alex Foster (1-6-7), Jonathan Matsumoto (4-2-6), Brandon Svendsen (3-2-5), John Mazzei (1-4-5), Mike Falk (1-3-4), Brett Pilkington (1-3-4), James Unger (1-3-4) and Michael Hodgson (0-4-4).
• As a team, BGSU is averaging 5.5 goals a game, while surrendering only 2.0 goals per game in that span.
• The BGSU power play has converted on 7-of-20 (.350) chances in that span, while the penalty kill has stopped 14-of-17 (.834) opposing chances.
• They are dominating the opening two periods of the contests, out-scoring the opposition 6-1 in the first period and 11-4 in the second. They also hold a 5-3 advantage in the third.
The Incredible Falk
Mike Falk entered the 2005-06 season with a career 24 goals in 89 games. This season alone he has already amassed 11 goals, which places him second on the team, one behind Matsumoto. The senior recorded eight goals in 27 games last season and had his career-best 11 goals in 35 games his freshman year. Falk ranks 38th in the country with .55 goals/game. He also is T-25th in the nation with five power-play goals. On the year the senior forward has 11 goals and five assists in 20 games, six points shy of his career-high, set his freshman campaign.
Horrell Has Been Moving On Up
In his last four starts, senior Jon Horrell not only owns a 4-0-0 overall record, but also has posted a 1.79 gaa and a .948 save percentage since getting the nod on Dec. 10 versus St. Lawrence. In that contest he stopped 35-of-39 shots and followed that up with a 40-of-42 saves in a win over UMass and 30-of-31 in the championship contest with UConn. Then on Tuesday night the senior recorded his first career shutout, stopping all 22 Raider shots in the 4-0 Falcon win. Entering that contest with St. Lawrence Horrell had a 3.71 gaa and a .879 save percentage. He now owns a 3.05 gaa and an impressive .904 save percentage. In those last four starts he has stopped 127-of-134 shots (.948) and owns a 1.79 gaa. Of the seven goals Horrell has surrendered in that span, three have come while defending the opposing team's power play and has given up two short-handed goals.
Falcons Have Played A Tough Schedule
Eight of the 20 games the Falcons have played this season have been against team's ranked in the top-15 of the USCHO poll at the time they faced them. BGSU has already faced #4 Boston College, two games with #2 Ohio State, two games with #11 Miami (now #2), and one game apiece with #14 Clarkson, #12 St. Lawrence and #12 Colgate.
Offense, Offense and More Offense
The Falcon offense ranks sixth in the country with 3.75 goals/game. Already this season they have put up six goals versus Boston College and St. Lawrence, seven goals against Nebraska-Omaha, eight tallies versus Northern Michigan and are coming off a season-best nine lamp lighters in the win over UConn. In terms of goals scored the Falcons are led by Jonathan Matsumoto (12), Mike Falk (11), James Unger (8), Derek Whitmore (6), Alex Foster (6) and Brandon Svendsen (6).
Svendsen Makes A Brief Stop At The Hospital Back on Dec. 9 freshman Brandon Svendsen dove headfirst into the BGSU goal post in an attempt to stop an empty net goal by Clarkson. While deflecting the puck into the corner his momentum also carried him headfirst into the boards behind the net. The impact was extreme enough that Svendsen had to leave the ice surface on a stretcher. The following night versus St. Lawrence the freshman was back out there and scored a goal to give the Falcons a 3-2 lead, a game they would eventually win 6-4 and extend his point streak to three games. In his last 10 games he has recorded 10 points (5g, 5a), after scoring only two points (1g, 1a) in his first 10 games of his Falcon career and is currently on a six-game point streak (3-5-8).
