Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
FERRIS STATE
Mazzei's First Career Two-Goal Game Lifts Falcons To 2-1 Win Over Ferris
February 23, 2008 | Ice Hockey
Feb. 23, 2008
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Senior tri-captain John Mazzei tallied his first career two-goal game on Saturday night, including the game-winner with less than three minutes to play, to lift the Bowling Green State University hockey team to a 2-1 win over visiting Ferris State. The Saturday evening Central Collegiate Hockey Association contest was held at the BGSU Ice Arena.
With the win, the Falcons improved to 16-16-0 overall and 13-13-0 in the CCHA, dropping the Bulldogs to 14-13-5 and 11-11-4, respectively.
In the victory, the Falcons matched their win total from the 2004-05 season, along with their conference win total from the same year as they picked up their second-consecutive victory on a CCHA Saturday. BG came into the contest just 4-7 on the season on CCHA Saturdays and just 1-2 in a Saturday game after losing on Friday.
Mazzei's game-winning goal came with just 2:53 remaining on the game clock. After Tim Maxwell got the puck to Tommy Dee, Dee found Mazzei with nice setup pass right in the middle of slot from behind the Bulldog net. Mazzei proceeded to fire a hard slapshot right on net that beat FSU netminder Mitch O'Keefe for his second game-winning goal of the season and second in the past three weeks. Maxwell and Dee were both credited with the game-winning assists on Mazzei's seventh goal of the season.
Getting to the game-winning play wasn't easy though for the Falcons as the game featured a lot of hard physical play. Just like the previous night, scoring chances weren't that easy to come by. Despite owning a 13-7 edge in first period shots, the Falcons found themselves trailing at the first intermission.
With the Falcons just starting a power play, a costly mistake would cost them an early short-handed goal against. Aaron Lewicki's shot right in the slot wound up finding the stick of Mike Fillinger on a rebound opprtunity just to the left of the Falcon crease. Fillinger followed by sliding the puck between Falcon goaltender Nick Eno and the left post for his seventh goal of the season as Lewicki added the assist at the 7:09 mark of the opening period.
The game would stay that way all the way up to the final period as both Eno and O'Keefe turned the game into goaltending duel. Eno turned away 17 of 18 shots he saw in the first 40 minutes, while O'Keefe stopped all 25 Falcon shots he faced as the Falcons held a 12-11 edge in the second period.
Finally at the 2:55 mark of the third period, the Falcons struck and evened the game up at, 1-1. Senior tri-captain Michael Hodgson fired a hard shot on net from the point that hit O'Keefe's pad and came to a stop at this feet. There to collect the rebound on the left side of the crease was Mazzei, who knocked home the rebound for his first marker of the night and sixth of the season. For Hodgson, it was his second helper of the season as Tomas Petruska also picked up an assist on Mazzei's game-tying goal.
BG's defense would keep the Bulldogs at bay then for the rest of the period as FSU went on to finish with just five third period shots. The Falcons would fire nine shots on net in the final period, including both shots by Mazzei into the Bulldog net.
Eno finished his night with 22 saves for the Falcons on 23 FSU shots, while O'Keefe finished with 32 saves on 34 BG shots.
BG ended the night 0-for-6 on the power play. The Bulldogs would finish the evening 0-for-2 as the game featured a total of 49 minutes in penalties.
The Falcons will return to play next Friday and Saturday (Feb.30-Mar.1) when they face defending National Champion Michigan State in a two-game home-and-home series. Game one will take place at 7:05 p.m. Friday at MSU's Munn Ice Arean, before the two teams conclude their series with a 7:35 p.m. faceoff on Saturday at the BGSU Ice Arena.
Saturday night will be senior night at the Ice Arena as all five Falcon seniors will be honored with a pregame ceremony. Saturday night will also feature a fund raiser for former Falcon player Ty Eigner and his son Peter. Peter was diagnosed two years ago with Neuroblastoma, a form of stomach cancer, that starts in the upper abdominal region. The Eigner family is forced to make constant trips to New York for treatments and Saturday night will feature numerous fund raising activities for the family, including an auction and all chuck-a-puck proceipts from the night going towards the family.
More information on the event will be posted on bgsufalcons.com in the next coming days.
All of next weekend's action can then be heard by tuning into WBGU 88.1 FM as Danny Nieves will bring you all the play-by-play action. For more from the Falcons weekend against FSU, tune into Nieve's show "In The Box" tomorrow at 7 p.m. as seniors Ben Geelan and Derek Whitmore will be making guest appearances. To access the show online, click on the link box located on the Falcon hockey page at www.bgsufalcons.com
