Falcons Reach Final Weekend With WCHA Championship Hopes Alive

#RV Bowling Green Falcons (19-11-6, 15-6-5)
at
Alabama Huntsville (6-20-6, 4-16-6)

GAME INFORMATION	Friday, March 4 / 8:07 pm ET
LOCATION	Huntsville, Ala. (Von Braun Center)
TELEVISION	None
RADIO	WBGU 88.1 FM (Evan Pivnick)
LIVE STATS	UAHChargers.com
WATCH ONLINE	WCHA.tv
LISTEN ONLINE	BGSUFalcons.com
GAME NOTES	BGSU \| Alabama Huntsville \| WCHA

#RV Bowling Green Falcons (19-11-6, 15-6-5)
at
Alabama Huntsville (6-20-6, 4-16-6)

GAME INFORMATION	Saturday, March 5 / 7:07 pm ET
LOCATION	Bowling Green, Ohio (BGSU Ice Arena)
TELEVISION	None
RADIO	WBGU 88.1 FM (Evan Pivnick/Adam Ramos)
LIVE STATS	UAHChargers.com
WATCH ONLINE	WCHA.tv
LISTEN ONLINE	BGSUFalcons.com
GAME NOTES	BGSU \| Alabama Huntsville \| WCHA

>>THE WEEK AHEAD
The Bowling Green Falcons swept the Ferris State Bulldogs in their final regular season series at the BGSU Ice Arena with wins of 4-3 and 6-2. Mark Cooper and Mitch McLain, who was named WCHA Offensive Player of the Week, each earned four points while Kevin Dufour scored three goals, as the Falcons clinched home-ice in the first round of the WCHA Tournament. BGSU still has a chance to win the McNaughton Trophy as they close the regular season with games on Friday and Saturday at Alabama-Huntsville. Both games are scheduled to begin at 8:07pm.

>>ABOUT ALABAMA HUNTSVILLE
* 6-20-6 overall record
* Tenth in WCHA (4-16-6, 14 points)
* Posted 3-14-5 record since last series vs BGSU
* 1-7-4 in WCHA home games but 1-1-3 in last five
* Matt Salhany has two SHG and is second on UAH with +3 on-ice rating
* Max McHugh leads team with 15 assists and 21 points, second on team with six goals
* Goalie Matt Larose is third in WCHA with .926 save percentage
* 58th of 60 teams in power play (.109)
* 54th of 60 teams in scoring offense (2.06/game)

>>NOTABLE
* The Falcons rank ninth nationally and second in the WCHA with 2.11 goals allowed per game
* Mark Cooper had back-to-back multi-point games vs FSU, his first multi-point streak since 2014-15
* Cooper leads BGSU with 14 goals; Falcons are 10-0-2 when he scores
* Mitch McLain scored two goals on Saturday for his first career multi-goal game
* Tyler Spezia earned his first career multi-assist game (two assists) on Saturday
* Mark Friedman's +4 on-ice rating on Saturday was a career best
* Matt Pohlkamp had a four point game (two goals, two assists) vs UAH on Nov. 21 in a 4-3 win

>>WHAT ARE THEY SAYING?
"We've wrapped up home ice. So the focus this weekend is to give ourselves an opportunity for that regular season championship. If the cards don't turn in our favor outside of our series, then there's not much we can do about that. But when the team talks with each other next week, we want to say that we did all we could do." -- BGSU Head Coach Chris Bergeron

>>THE WCHA TOURNAMENT
The Bowling Green Falcons clinched home ice in the first round of the WCHA Tournament for the third consecutive year with a 6-2 win over Ferris State on Saturday. The Falcons' final regular season goal is to win the McNaughton Trophy and clinch the No. 1 seed. BGSU is tied with Michigan Tech, two points behind conference leader Minnesota State. Bowling Green can earn the championship with two, three or four points this weekend but needs help. MTU must finish the weekend with fewer points, while MSU must have two (or more) fewer.

>>SENIOR NIGHT
Last weekend's series against Ferris State were the final regular season home games for five members of the Bowling Green Falcon hockey team: Mark Cooper, Jose Delgadillo, Ben Murphy, Brent Tate and Tommy Burke. The group made strong contributions to BGSU's sweep of FSU. Cooper posted a goal and three assists, while Delgadillo had a +2 on-ice rating in his first action since Dec. 5. Overall, the seniors combined for one goal, four assists, 12 shots, three blocks and a +5 on-ice rating. This season, they have contributed 22 goals, 45 points, 44 blocks and a +12 on-ice rating, while Burke is 4-3-0 with a 2.88 goals against average and a .896 save percentage.

>>SENIOR WEEKEND
Senior weekend continues to be a special time for the Bowling Green Falcons. With their sweep of Ferris State, they have earned at least one point during the final home series of the regular season in each of Chris Bergeron's six years at the helm and are 8-3-1 overall in those games. They have won seven in a row and have scored five or more goals in five of the seven. BGSU has also clinched home ice in the WCHA Tournament on Senior Weekend in two of the last three seasons.

>>ROAD WARRIORS
BGSU went 11-6-4 away from the BGSU Ice Arena in 2014-15. The team had not won more than 11 games away from home since the 1987-88 team posted 16 victories. The Falcons are 9-7-1 on the road in 2015-16 and need just one win at Alabama-Huntsville to earn a double-digit road win total for the second straight year.

>>WALKING ON SUNSHINE
Junior defenseman Sean Walker has played a key role for Bowling Green in recent series. He has earned a point in five straight games, which is his longest streak since Nov. 15-Dec. 6, 2014. Walker owns two goals and eight assists in his last 11 contests, including a power play goal that opened the scoring in a 4-1 win at Alaska on Saturday, Feb. 20. He is one of the Falcons' leaders with a +11 on-ice rating and is +4 over his last seven games. Among WCHA defensemen, Walker is tied for most assists (16) and is fourth in points (19).

>>MARKED MAN
Bowling Green senior forward Mark Cooper is finishing his season in style. In his final regular season home games, he had a goal and three assists against Ferris State. Those were his first back-to-back multiple point games since Jan. 24-25, 2014. He has points in three straight games and seven of his last 11, Cooper has five goals and six assists in that time and leads Bowling Green this season with 14 goals and 24 points. Among WCHA players, Cooper's 14 goals are tied for second, and his points are tied for sixth.

>>NELL AND VOID
Sophomore goalie Chris Nell has given up just 55 goals in 30 starts (15-8-6) this season. He has allowed two or fewer in 22 of the 30. A WCHA Goaltender of the Year contender, Nell ranks first in the league in goals against average (1.82) and save percentage (.933). He is tied for second in shutouts (three) and is third in winning percentage (.621). Nationally, Nell ranks fifth in goals against average and fourth in save percentage. In just 42 career starts, Nell has earned six shutouts, third-most in program history. He needs just one more to match the school record of seven, held jointly by Tyler Masters (1999-03) and Andrew Hammond (2010-13).

>>MAGNIFICENT MITCH MCLAIN
Sophomore forward Mitch McLain was named WCHA Offensive Player of the Week after providing an offensive spark for Bowling Green in both games of their weekend sweep of Ferris State. McLain earned his first career two goal game, his first career four point weekend and his first multi-point game of the season against the Bulldogs. On Friday, he provided the lead assist on the two second period goals that rescued BGSU from a 2-0 deficit. On Saturday, McLain scored the game-winning goal with 14:47 to go in the game, then provided distance with another goal just four minutes later.

>>LUCKY NUMBER 13
Stephen Baylis' first take with the Falcons has looked increasingly better as the season has developed. He waited until his tenth game for his first career point and had four through his first 19. On Jan. 21, he scored his second career goal against Alaska-Anchorage and has been a force ever since. He has four goals and four assists in his last 11 games and currently owns a three-game point streak, the first multi-game streak of his young career. Against Ferris State, Baylis scored the game-winning goal on Friday night and had an assist in each game.

>>CENTURY MEN
Bowling Green now has seven players with over 100 career games. The group is led by seniors Mark Cooper (152 games) and Ben Murphy (142), while juniors Matt Pohlkamp (114), Sean Walker (113) and Pierre-Luc Mercier (111) joined the club earlier this month. Senior Brent Tate (111) added his name to the list on Jan. 16 against Miami. Junior Kevin Dufour (107 games) eclipsed the century mark on Friday, Jan. 29 against Michigan Tech. These players have combined for 48 goals and 119 points this season.

>>CENTURY MAN, PART TWO
Head coach Chris Bergeron earned his 98th and 99th career victories last weekend against Ferris State. His next triumph will make him the fourth coach in Bowling Green history to reach 100 wins. He would join Jerry York (342 wins), Ron Mason (160) and Buddy Powers (135). Powers was the last to reach the century mark, when his Falcons defeated Ohio State 3-0 on Jan. 14, 2000. Bergeron is 60-37-17 since the start of the 2013-14 season.

>>HAWK=FALCON
Sophomore forward Brandon Hawkins lit up Alaska Anchorage for three goals and five points on Jan. 21-22 and earned his first career WCHA Offensive Player of the Week honor. He followed that with another goal and two points on Jan. 29 against Michigan Tech. Hawkins' four goals are the most in three consecutive regular season games since Tyler Spezia did it between Oct. 25 and Nov. 1, 2014, while no Falcon had scored seven points in three games since Dan DeSalvo had eight from Jan. 3-10, 2014. Hawkins has seven goals and 13 points in his last 16 games. He is third on the team with ten goals and 20 points.

>>FANTASTIC FRESHMEN
The Falcons have eight freshmen, and the group has contributed heavily to BGSU's success this season. All of them have multiple points this season, and four are ranked among the top 17 rookie scorers in the WCHA.. Against Alaska-Anchorage on Jan. 21-22, Adam Smith and Joe McKeown earned their first points while Smith, McKeown and Connor McDonald lit the lamp for the first time. Bowling Green freshmen have poured in nine goals and 31 points in 16 games since the beginning of January, and they have combined for 14 goals and 54 points overall. The rookies account for over 20 percent of the team's points and 25 percent of its assists.

>>DEFENSE, DEFENSE
Bowling Green is on pace to shatter the program record for fewest goals allowed in a season. The 1975-76 team allowed a program-low 90 goals in 32 games. This year, the Falcons have given up just 76 goals through the first 36 contests. BGSU is on pace to end the regular season with only 80 goals allowed, despite playing 38 regular season games.

>>MORE DEFENSE
This season, BGSU held opponents to three or fewer goals in 21 consecutive games, a streak which ended on Jan. 29 against Michigan Tech. The 21-game streak is a school record, as the Falcons broke the previous mark of 14 in their 6-3 win on Jan. 2 against Clarkson. That 14-game stretch occurred during the 2012-13 season. This string of excellence has helped BGSU achieve a 2.11 goals against average, which would shatter the school record (2.39). In the 41 years of Falcon hockey prior to the arrival of Chris Bergeron, BGSU had six seasons with a 3.00 or better goals against average. Bergeron's teams have already matched that total in his six seasons, and his defenses own four of the top five seasons for goals against average in school history.

>>SWEEPING UP THE COMPETITION
Bowling Green earned its sixth sweep of the 2015-16 season with a pair of victories over Ferris State last weekend. In addition to the Bulldogs, the Falcons have taken the brooms to Ohio State, Alabama-Huntsville, Northern Michigan, Bemidji State and Alaska-Anchorage. These six sweeps are the most in a single season for BGSU in 26 years (1989-90). The last Falcon team to have more was the 1987-88 bunch, who earned eight.

>>THE MADHOUSE ON MERCER
Bowling Green finished the regular season home schedule with a 10-4-5 record overall and 8-1-5 in the WCHA. That is the best record in conference games at the BGSU Ice Arena since the 1994-95 team went 11-1-1 in the CCHA. The Falcons scored 46 goals in those games and averaged 3.29 per contest, while they allowed only 32.

>>FLIGHT ATTENDANCE
More than 3,000 fans have piled into the BGSU Ice Arena in five of the last seven home games, including an amazing 4,613 on Saturday against Ferris State. That raises the average attendance this year to 2,670 fans, the most since the 2004-05 season. Last year, BGSU averaged 2,601 fans. The attendance on Saturday night was a season high, eclipsing the 4,025 fans that watched the Falcons host Miami on Friday, Feb. 12. Overall, Bowling Green has welcomed 50,735 fans in 2015-16, the most in one season since 52,126 in 1998-99.

>>SPEZIA STEPPING UP
Sophomore forward Tyler Spezia has ratcheted up his play as the playoffs approach. Two weeks ago at Alaska, Spezia scored a goal and an assist as the Falcons split the series. In the opener against Ferris State, he lit the lamp for BGSU's first goal in the team's 4-3 win. He followed with a pair of assists on Mitch McLain's third period goals on Saturday. Spezia's four-game point streak is a career-best, while Saturday was just his second career multi-point game (Oct. 31, 2014 vs Minnesota State).

>>SEEING 20-20
With 23 wins during the 2014-15 season, Bowling Green posted the 19th 20-win season in program history, a mark with includes five 30-win seasons. It is the first time the team won 20 games since the 1995-96 campaign. At 19-11-6, the Falcons are one win shy of their first back-to-back 20-win seasons since 1994-95 and 1995-96.

>>WCHA SCHOLAR-ATHLETES
On Thursday, Feb. 18, the WCHA named the recipients of the 2015-16 WCHA Scholar-Athlete Award. Overall, 123 student-athletes were recognized, and that group included three members of the BGSU hockey team. Junior goalie Tomas Scholl received the award for the second time. Junior forward Matt Pohlkamp and sophomore forward Jakob Reichert were first-time honorees. In order to receive the award, student-athletes must have completed at least one year of residency at their present institution prior to the current year and must have a 3.50 GPA (4.0 scale) for the previous two semesters (or three quarters). An athlete may also qualify if his GPA is at least 3.50 for all terms at his or her present institution.

>>THE VOICE ON THE MIC
All games this season can be heard on the radio by tuning into 88.1 WBGU-FM. Evan Pivnick will provide the play-by-play commentary throughout the season. The pregame show will air 30 minutes prior to the opening face-off. The broadcast can be heard globally on www.bgsufalcons.com and WBGUFM.com.

>>WCHA.TV IS LIVE
In partnership with industry leader Stretch Internet, WCHA.tv will allow fans to watch all 10 league teams and up to 196 games during the 2015-16 season on just about any device – computer, tablet, phone and many Smart TVs – with a responsive experience customized for that particular medium. High-quality HD streams, when available from the originating arena, will be viewable in multiple screen layout options (including picture-in-picture, multi-view format to watch up to four games simultaneously and full-screen video). For more information, visit WCHA.tv.

>>LIVE STATS
Live stats for all BGSU home games are available on the BGSU website at BGSUFalcons.com. Navigate to the hockey schedule for links to all available ways to follow the action.

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Players Mentioned

Stephen Baylis

Shane Bednard

Tommy Burke

Mark Cooper

Jose Delgadillo

Dan DeSalvo

Kevin Dufour

Jordan Ernst

Mark Friedman

Brandon Hawkins

Connor McDonald

Joe McKeown

Mitch McLain

Pierre-Luc Mercier

Ben Murphy

Chris Nell

Matt Pohlkamp

Jakob Reichert

John Schilling

Adam Smith

Tyler Spezia

Brent Tate

Sean Walker

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