Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
2-1-0, 1-0-0WCHA
Alabama Huntsville
0-3-0, 0-1-0WCHA
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowling Green | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| UAH | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Freshmen Lead The Charge, defeat UAH 5-0
October 17, 2014 | Ice Hockey
Freshman goaltender Chris Nell stopped all 18 shots to earn his first shutout victory, while Mitch McLain and Brandon Hawkins each lit-the-lamp for their first collegiate goals.
Audio: Chris Bergeron | Chris Nell | Brandon Hawkins
Inside The Nest: Falcon Hockey | Preseason Edition
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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The Bowling Green State University ice hockey team shut out the University of Alabama in Huntsville on Friday (Oct. 17) night, defeating the Chargers (0-3-0, 0-1-0) by a score of 5-0. The win gave the Falcons (2-1-0, 1-0-0) their first two points in Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) play. Bowling Green had five different skaters light the lamp for the game, while freshmen netminder Chris Nell (1-0-0) turned away 20-of-20 shots fired his way in his collegiate debut.
"I took it like any other game and went through my routine tonight," starting goaltender Chris Nell said. "After the first couple shifts I settled in and found my comfort zone."
The Orange and Brown saw junior Ben Murphy net his first goal of the season, while sophomores Kevin Dufour and Matt Pohlkamp also tally goals on Friday night. Freshmen Mitch McLain and Brandon Hawkins also recorded their first collegiate goals throughout the evening.
"When we were playing well tonight we were a handful," head coach Chris Bergeron said. "We want to make sure we are getting to our game as quickly and often as possible."
The Falcons jumped out quickly in the first period, taking control of the game early. The Orange and Brown scored the game's first goal at 6:59 into the opening act, coming off the stick of McLain on a short-handed goal. The Falcons ferocious defense lead to a turnover in the neutral zone and quickly sent the puck into their offensive zone on the far side of the boards.
Valleau, who entered the game third in the NCAA averaging 2.00 assist per game, skated towards UAH starting netminder Carmine Guerriero and sent a pass to McLain in the slot. The rookie centerman from Baxter, Minnesota found himself point-blank behind the defense and fired the puck to the back of the net, tallying his first collegiate goal.
Valleau, who recorded four assists last weekend against No. 10 Miami University, ended his night with two more helpers. The freshman defenseman has a team-leading six assists through the first three games of the season. Valleau has assisted on an impressive 60 percent of the Falcons' goals on the season.
"We want to apply pressure on the penalty kill and that's the mentality we have," Bergeron said. "That pressure paid off tonight."
Fighting off two early power-play opportunities for the Chargers, the Falcons continued to press Alabama-Huntsville in the first period, outshooting the Chargers by a dominate 11-4 margin. The Falcons cashed in again with 23 seconds remaining in the period, when Dufour sent a touch pass by Pohlkamp that sailed across the crease into the back of the twine to double Bowling Green's lead to 2-0.
The goal gave Dufour a team-leading four tallies on the season, and has recorded at least one goal in each BGSU's three games.
Leading by two goals entering the second period, the Orange and Brown continued to pour on the offense and out-shot the Chargers by an 18-9 margin in the middle frame. Bowling Green's third goal of the contest came at 15:33, coming off the stick of Hawkins at the top of the circle.
"We played our game tonight and it was a great team effort," Hawkins said. "We fought hard all night and it was great to earn the first two points of the weekend."
The Orange and Brown lit-the-lamp two more times in the final period, as both Murphy and Pohlkamp netted their first goals of the season to hand BGSU a 5-0 lead.
The Falcons out-shot the Chargers by a dominate 40-17 advantage on the game –which is the lowest amount of shots the Orange and Brown have allowed this season--, and finished the contest 2-for-4 on the power play.
Alabama-Huntsville was unable to solve Nell over final 20 minutes of action, giving him his first career shutout in his debut as a member of the Orange and Brown.
"I thought we battled real hard tonight," Nell said. "It's a big two points tonight and we look forward to tomorrow."
Bowling Green will be right back in action Saturday night (Oct. 18), facing off against the Chargers in the second game of their two-game series. The Falcons will look to take all four WCHA points over the weekend tomorrow night in another WCHA battle with UAH. The puck is scheduled to drop at 7:07 p.m. CT.
