Falcons Dump Alaska Anchorage, 4-3

Friday, February 27

Anchorage, Alaska

11:07 P.M.

Bowling Green State University

19-9-5, 15-7-3

Alaska Anchorage

7-20-4, 4-19-2

Team	1	2	3	F
Bowling Green	1	1	2	4
Alaska Anchorage	0	1	2	3

Photo by: Todd Pavlack / BGSUHockey.com

February 28, 2015 | Ice Hockey

Box Score

By: by Jason Knavel, Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications

Boxscore

Anchorage, Alaska – Brandon Hawkins put the topper on a wild third period Friday night, breaking a 3-3 tie with his 12^th goal of the year to carry the No. 11 Bowling Green State University hockey team to a 4-3 win over Alaska Anchorage.

With the goal, Hawkins picked up his 23^rd point of the year, moving into a tie for first in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) among freshmen. But more importantly, his goal with 7:22 remaining helped snap a three-game losing streak for the Falcons and earned the team home ice and the No. 3 seed for the WCHA Tournament.

Alaska Anchorage dug out of a 2-0 deficit and twice tied the game in the third period. Bowling Green carried a 2-1 lead into the third period but the Seawolves tied the contest just 35 seconds into the final frame.

Anchorage took a five-minute major later in the third period and senior Adam Berkle made the Seawolves pay with 13:54 to play. Bowling Green regained the lead on assists from Pierre-Luc Mercier and Sean Walker. (Listen to the goal call by Evan Pivnick by CLICKING HERE)

But shortly thereafter, BGSU took a pair of penalties and Anchorage scored on a 5-on-3 power play with 10:26 to go that tied the score once more.

That set the stage for Hawkins' heroics. Mark Cooper took an initial shot and Hawkins followed up with a shot off the net. He regained the puck and got a second chance to put it away for the game-winning tally. (Listen to the goal call by Evan Pivnick by CLICKING HERE)

Bowling Green outshot Anchorage 32-21 but much of the edge came in a lopsided third period when the Falcons held a 16-6 advantage in shots. Tommy Burke earned his 10^th win between the pipes on the season by making 18 saves.

The Falcons jumped out to a two-goal lead as Dajon Mingo, freshly moved to forward after spending the season on defense, sprung Brett D'Andrea for a goal at the 6:37 mark of the first period. For D'Andrea, it was just the third goal of his career. Mingo picked up the 30^th assist of his career and Nolan Valleau added an assist as well, his 14^th of his freshman campaign. (Listen to the goal call by Evan Pivnick by CLICKING HERE)

Mitch McLain gave the Falcons a 2-0 lead just 2:53 into the second period for his seventh goal of the year. The assist went to Sean Walker, his 11^th of the year. (Listen to the goal call by Evan Pivnick by CLICKING HERE)

Alaska cut the deficit in half with a shorthanded goal on the first BGSU power play attempt of the night. Blake Tatchell went unassisted to beat Tommy Burke and spark the Alaska offense. It was the third shorthanded goal the Falcons have allowed this year. BGSU has also scored shorthanded three times. Bowling Green held that 2-1 lead into the third period.

With the win, BGSU improves to 19-9-5 overall and 15-7-3 in WCHA play. Alaska Anchorage falls to 7-20-4 overall and 4-19-2 in the WCHA. The 19 wins are the most in the five-year Chris Bergeron era at BGSU and marks the fifth straight season in which the Falcons have improved their win total. Bowling Green will face Alaska Anchorage again Saturday night at 11:07 pm ET before returning home.

The Falcons will host Alabama Huntsville in the BGSU Ice Arena Friday and Saturday at 7:07 pm with Saturday's game serving as Senior Day. Then, the Falcons will host a conference opponent to be determined for the WCHA Tournament First Round. The best-of-three series will take place March 13-15 with 7:07 pm start times each night. Game three is an "if necessary contest".