Falcons Climb Into First In WCHA With 3-1 Win Over LSSU

Friday, January 8

Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.

7:37 PM

Bowling Green State University

13-5-5, 9-2-4WCHA

Lake Superior State

7-12-4, 4-5-4WCHA

Bowling Green

Lake Superior State

Photo by: Ruben Kappler, BGSU Marketing & Communications

January 08, 2016 | Ice Hockey

Box Score

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

Box score

Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. – Bowling Green State University sophomore goalie Chris Nell returned to the lineup to make 24 saves as the No. 16-ranked Falcons beat Lake Superior State on the road Friday night 3-1 to climb into a first place tie atop the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) standings.

With the win, Bowling Green improved to 13-5-5 on the season and 9-2-4 in WCHA action. The Falcons moved into a tie for first in the WCHA standings with Northern Michigan's 2-1 win over Minnesota State that dropped the defending conference champion Mavericks to an identical 9-2-4 league mark.

"We defended great," BGSU head coach Chris Bergeron said. "And we had a plan offensively and we executed. We had some really good sections of the game where we were able to play offensively in their zone."

Bowling Green peppered Lake Superior State with 42 shots on goal but netminder Nick Kossoff stood up under the pressure early. The contest was scoreless after one period of play and remained deadlocked until midway through the second period.

That's when freshman Jordan Ernst, playing in just his fourth collegiate game, picked up a loose puck and made a beautiful lead pass to Mark Cooper. Cooper danced in front of goal and beat Kossoff with a shot that trickled into the net for a 1-0 lead at the 11:02 mark of the middle frame. (CLICK HERE to hear the goal call)

The Falcons outshot the Lakers 26-18 through two periods of play but the score remained 1-0 until early into the third. On the team's sixth power play chance of the evening, Brandon Hawkins fired a rocket from the point that found its way past Kossoff for a 2-0 lead just 80 seconds into the period. Ben Murphy and Mark Friedman picked up assists on the goal. It was Hawkins fifth goal of the year, while Murphy earned his seventh assist and Friedman his 10^th. (CLICK HERE to hear the goal call)

Lake Superior State did answer back just over three minutes later on a Ryan Renz goal but the Falcons maintained the 2-1 lead into the latter stages of the game. The Lakers were forced to pull their goalie and Tyler Spezia walked in for an empty net goal, his seventh of the year. It also marked the third straight game in which Spezia scored a goal, while Matt Pohlkamp got his team-high 11^th assist and Sean Walker tallied his eighth. (CLICK HERE to hear the goal call)

Nell, who ranks among the top four nationally in goals against average and save percentage, returned to the lineup after missing the Clarkson series with an injury. He made 24 saves and improved his season average to 1.40 goals against and a .945 save percentage.

"Chris played well," Bergeron said. "He made a few saves look easier than they probably were and he played the puck pretty well."

One of the keys to Bowling Green's success this year has been its ability to avoid losing streaks. The Falcons improved to 5-0 this year following a loss and has won eight straight dating back to last year after tasting defeat. It is also the team's fourth straight road win to improve to 7-3-1 on the road this year.

The Falcons' 42 shots on goal were their second highest this year behind only a 43-shot performance against this same Lake Superior State on Nov. 6.

Bowling Green will face Lake Superior State (7-12-4, 4-5-4 WCHA) again Saturday at 7:07 pm looking for a second consecutive road conference sweep.

Postgame Notes
* BGSU won its 39^th Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) game Friday night. The Falcons are in their third year in the league and have a .627 winning percentage in WCHA contests.
* Captain Sean Walker played in his 100^th game with the Falcons, while Pierre-Luc Mercier played in his 99th.
* Jordan Ernst earned his first career point, an assist.
* Tyler Spezia picked up his seventh goal and ninth point of the season. A year ago as a freshman, Spezia posted six goals and eight points for the year.
* Brent Tate returned from an injury that had held him out of six straight games dating back to the last time he played – Dec. 4 vs. Minnesota State.
* Brandon Hawkins picked up his third game-winning goal of the season, tied with Mark Cooper and Pierre-Luc Mercier for the team high this season. His seven career game-winning goals are tied with Mercier among active career leaders for BGSU.
* Tyler Spezia's current three-game goal scoring streak is tied for his career high. He scored in three straight games Oct. 25 to Nov. 1, 2014.
* Brandon Hawkins has scored a goal in two straight games. It is the third time in his career that he has scored goals in back-to-back games.
* BGSU improved to 10-1-2 this year when scoring first, 8-0-1 when leading after one period and 10-0-1 when leading after two.
* Bowling Green also improved to 7-1-1 when scoring a power play goal and 8-1-2 when keeping the opponent from scoring with the man advantage.
* Three goals continues to be the magic number for the Falcons. BGSU is now 9-0-0 when scoring at least three times in a game.
* BGSU has not lost two games in a row since February of 2015.
* Tyler Spezia's empty net goal was the Falcons' sixth empty-netter of the year. BGSU has allowed just one empty-netter this year.