Falcons Head To LSSU For Playoffs After Loss To Notre Dame

Saturday, March 2

South Bend, Ind.

7:05 p.m.

Bowling Green State University

Notre Dame

Photo by: Todd Pavlack / BGSUHockey.com

March 02, 2013 | Ice Hockey

By: BGSU-Athletic Communications

BOXSCORE | Photo Gallery (Todd Pavlack)
Postgame Audio: Coach Bergeron | Andrew Wallace

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Bowling Green State University ice hockey team lost to Notre Dame in the final game of the regular season Saturday night, falling to the Fighting Irish by a score of 4-1 at the Compton Family Ice Arena. Junior Andrew Wallace scored the lone goal for the Falcons, while senior goaltender Andrew Hammond (8-11-3) stopped 22-of-26 shots in the loss. The Falcons were held scoreless on the power play, going 0-for-1 in the game. The Fighting Irish netted two goals with the man advantage, scoring on 2-of-3 opportunities.

Similar to Friday's contest, Notre Dame scored the first goal of the game. Irish defenseman Robbie Russo started the play, taking possession of the puck in the bottom of the Falcon zone. Russo sent a pass towards the slot, eventually finding freshman Mario Lucia at the top of the Bowling Green crease. Lucia jabbed away at the puck, beating Hammond on the doorstep to give the Irish a 1-0 lead.

The Falcons responded at the 13:19 mark of the first period, scoring an even-strength goal to tie the contest, 1-1. The Falcons rushed into the Notre Dame zone, with sophomore Adam Berkle taking possession of the puck at the goal line. Berkle shot the puck in close on Irish goaltender Mike Johnson, handcuffing the Notre Dame netminder. Berkle's rebound sat at the near side of the cage, allowing Wallace to swoop in and jam home his third goal of the season.

Notre Dame dominated the shot department In the middle stanza, outshooting the Falcons by a 14-3 margin. The Fighting Irish took advantage of the offensive pressure, scoring the period's only goal at 4:26 of the frame. After a clear into the Falcon end, Hammond came out of the net to play the puck. Hammond sent a pass up the far boards, hitting Notre Dame's David Gerths. Before Hammond could get back into position, Gerths fired a shot on net, beating Hammond to give Notre Dame a 2-1 lead.

The Fighting Irish added a third goal, scoring a power play tally just over three minutes into the third period. Notre Dame's Jeff Costello fired a shot on the Bowling Green net from the far boards, bouncing the puck off Hammond's right pad. The puck took a small bounce after the save, landing right on the tape of Notre Dame captain Anders Lee in front. Lee fired home the rebound for his 18^th goal of the year, giving Notre Dame the 3-1 lead.

Notre Dame would add a final goal in the contest, netting a power play tally at the 17:37 mark of the final frame. The Irish flurry in the third proved to be too much for the Falcons, as Notre Dame pulled away with the 4-1 win.

The Falcon's overall record now sits at 13-18-5, including a record of 10-15-3-1 in conference play. The Falcon's loss paired with Lake Superior's win and Michigan's shootout win drops Bowling Green to ninth place in the CCHA. The Falcons will now head to eighth-seeded Lake Superior State for the first round of the CCHA Playoffs, taking on the Lakers in the best 2-of-3 series. The start time of Friday's contest is still to be determined.