With a Weekend Sweep of Bemidji State, Hockey Heads to WCHA Championship

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Box Score
Dufour Goal Call 1-1
Pohlkamp Goal Call 2-1
WCHA Semifinal Game Win Call

BEMIDJI, Minn. – With a 2-1 comeback win over Bemidji State, the Bowling Green hockey team will head to its first conference championship game appearance since 1990. The Falcons swept the Beavers in the semifinal best-of-three series with a dramatic 4-3 overtime win Friday night, followed by tonight's 2-1 victory to enter the championship game on a seven game win streak.

Bemidji State got on the board early as Gerry Fitzgerald was able to capitalize on a turnover at the Bowling Green blue line just 3:16 in. The 1-0 Beaver lead would hold through the first period, although it didn't take long before the Falcons struck in the second.

After a hat trick performance last night, senior Kevin Dufour answered for the Bowling Green squad by evening the score to 1-1 with a game-tying goal just 1:35 into the second period of play. The goal marked Dufour's 18th of the season and fourth of the weekend.

"What I think happened tonight is that Bemidji State came out of the gate hard and we made a mistake that ended up in the back of our net," Bowling Green head coach Chris Bergeron said. "It could have sent a team sideways and could have set the tone for the rest of the game, but we played a really good last 10:00 of the period. We settled in for a high-level of competition and a hard game."

The teams headed into the third period all tied up at 1-1, and the Falcons struck early again in the period. Junior Mitch McLain made his way through the Bemidji State defense and passed the puck from center ice to senior Matt Pohlkamp, who took a shoot from the top of the right faceoff circle and made it 2-1 Bowling Green with a 5-hole goal with 16:11 remaining in regulation. Pohlkamp also scored last night, and now has nine points in the last four games.

"Our upperclassmen have stepped up, in both the junior and senior classes," Coach Bergeron said of the goal-scorers. "Chris Nell has played well in net, and I think in college sports a team will only go as far as the upperclassmen take you, and our seniors didn't want this to be over yet so good for them."

The Falcons offense held strong through the third period, and it wasn't until under two minutes remained before Bemidji State's goaltender was able to get off the ice for an additional Beaver attacker. Junior goaltender Chris Nell faced numerous shots in the final minutes, and was crucial in keeping the Falcons ahead, and ultimately closed out the night with 25 saves and just one goal against.

Coming down to the final 5.3 on the clock, the Beavers won a faceoff in the Bowling Green zone and the Falcons blocked the final shot to seal the 2-1 victory and the weekend sweep to advance to the WCHA Championship.

"Bemidji State won the league for a reason and they came out hard after losing a game at home last night," added Coach Bergeron. "There was no surprise, no panic on our end and we took it and moved forward. I think we were playing the way we want to play, which is the right way, and tonight we did that."

With tonight's win, the Falcons are on an active seven game win streak, which is the longest under Coach Bergeron's time at Bowling Green. It is also the longest win streak since the 1987-88 campaign; a season in which the Falcons earned a berth into the NCAA Tournament.

"The team is happy for sure. To come on the road and win the series is great," Coach Bergeron said. "The guys worked hard and found a way to win last night, even though they didn't play their best, and we came back and played better tonight. It was a resilient group effort, where they played better, they got a win that they deserved."

Tomorrow's third game between Michigan Tech and Minnesota State will determine if the Falcons will travel to Houghton, Mich. or to Mankato, Minn. for the March 18 WCHA Championship game.

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