Bowling Green State University
FERRIS STATE
BG Yields Late Goal In Loss To Ferris State
February 14, 2009 | Ice Hockey
Feb. 14, 2009
BOWLING GREEN, OHIO - In a game in which Bowling Green and Ferris State could manage only one goal in the first forty minutes, the two teams traded goals twice in the third period with the Bulldogs getting the decider with just over six minutes left to earn a 3-2 victory Friday night at the BGSU Ice Arena.
The two team put 42 shots on goal combined in the first two periods but FSU sophomore goalie Pat Nagle and BGSU senior Jimmy Spratt where more than up to the challenge with only a Wildcat goal with just under two minutes left in the second period the only scoring in the first two periods.
Spratt had 19 saves in the first two periods and Nagle was credited with 22 stops.
In the third period the offenses came alive.
Bowling Green evened the game just 30 seconds into the final stanza as senior Brandon Svendsen scored his 10th of the season from junior Kyle Page and freshman Nick Bailen. Ferris State re-took the lead with a goal at 10:15 by sophomore Todd Pococke, his first of the season.
BG came right back just over two minutes later, at 12:21, as Svendsen earned his second of the night from the left corner of the goal from sophomore Dan Sexton and Bailen. The goal came just over a minute after BG started a five-on-three situation after FSU had taken a couple penalties. It was Svendsen's second two-goal game of the season with the other coming in the season opener against RIT.
But, the visitors would notch the game-winner at 14:08 from sophomore Scott Wietecha, his fifth of the year as both teams were at full strength.
The Falcons played the final 1:25 with the goalie pulled in favor of a sixth attacker and had several excellent chances, but could not solve Nagle for a tying goal to send the game to overtime. The Falcons had 14 shots on goal in the final stanza with Nagle making as many as six saves from point-blank range while the Falcons also hit a post.
BG had a 36-28 edge in shots for the game with Nagle responsible for making stops on 34 of those while Spratt, who made several strong saves to keep the Falcons in the game, finished with 25 stops.
The Falcons were 1-of-7 on the power play while BG held FSU off the board with the man-advantage five times.
With the loss, BG's sixth straight, all in conference action, the Falcons fall to 9-19-3 overall and 6-16-1-0 in Central Collegiate Hockey Association play while Ferris State improves to 12-12-7 overall and 9-9-5-2 in league action. It was FSU's fifth one-goal victory this season while the Falcons are 5-6 in one-goal games. The game was the sixth in the last nine meetings between the two programs that has been decided by a single goal.
The Falcons will look to get back on right side of the ledger Saturday night when they host Ferris State in a 7:05 contest at the Ice Arena.
BG head coach Scott Paluch
"Obviously we are going through a tough stretch as far as not getting rewards. Again tonight, it was what we have seen for the last so many games. Our guys played very hard and are doing a lot of things well and creating a lot of chances. We score a big power-play goal to tie it up, then they get the deciding goal. We got three really good chances down the stretch and our leading scorer gets a chance and the goalie makes the save. All it comes down to is their goalie makes a terrific save at the end of the game or we're going to overtime."
"You throw pucks at the net and good things happen. We preach quite a bit about shifts after goals. So we want to be able to get that momentum back. We were able to do that twice tonight. Unfortunately, we gave up that last goal."
BGSU senior Brandon Svendsen
"It is frustrating right now. We're struggling. Sometimes the bounces go your way and sometimes they don't. When your struggling you have to work harder. It's hard to keep going, but we have a team that won't quit and will keep working at it. There's not much you can do or change. You just have to keep going and working hard. That is really the only way to get through it."
