Ferris State Hockey Completes Weekend Sweep With Late Third-Period Goal

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's ice hockey team completed its first-ever weekend of Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) action with an unbeaten mark as the Bulldogs wrapped up a sweep of Alabama-Huntsville with a 3-2 road win on Saturday (Nov. 2) night in the series finale at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Ala.

Forward Justin Buzzeo scored the game-winner for Ferris State at 16:36 of the final period on a power-play goal to lift the Bulldogs to the win.  FSU has now won three-straight outings to date and is 5-2 overall along with 2-0 in WCHA action.

Ferris State had to fight back twice in the contest from a one-goal deficit after winning game one of the series in convincing fashion by a 5-0 score on Friday night.

After a scoreless opening period, the Chargers struck first in the second frame when Alex Allan notched an even-strength four-on-four goal at 11:29 of the period off assists from Brent Fletcher and Steven Koshey.

FSU responded, though, a little over a minute later when Buzzeo notched his first of two goals on the night to tie the game up.  Both Dominic Panetta and sophomore Kenny Babinski were credited with assists on the Bulldogs' first goal of the night.

The 1-1 score stood up until seven minutes into the third and final period of action.  UAH took its final lead at 13:04 on a goal from Matt Salhany, which was assisted by both Wade Schools and Ben Reinhardt.

However, FSU answered as freshman Kyle Schempp tallied a goal less than 20 seconds later at 13:23 on a shot assisted by fellow newcomer Gerald Mayhew.

The Bulldogs then needed only three more minutes to put the game-winner into the back of the net with the second goal from Buzzeo.  His final marker was assisted by seniors Justin DeMartino and Scott Czarnowczan.

Junior goaltender CJ Motte remained unbeaten at 5-0 on the year between the pipes with the victory. He made 19 saves on the night, including seven in the final stanza.

On the Alabama-Huntsville side, Matt Larose went the distance in net and had 42 saves as FSU held a decisive 45-21 edge in total shots for the contest.

Ferris State finished one-of-five with the man-advantage on the power play while UAH was held scoreless in five tries.  Overall, FSU had eight penalties for 16 minutes in the box and the Chargers netted six for 12 minutes.

Alabama-Huntsville fell to 0-6 overall and 0-4 in league action with the loss. Ferris State also improved to 8-2 all-time against the Chargers with its fifth win in the last six meetings to date.

Ferris State will return home and will host Bemidji State in its first-ever WCHA home games next weekend (Nov. 7-8) at the Ewigleben Ice Arena in Big Rapids.  It will open a six-game homestand for the Bulldogs in the month of November.

Tickets for all home contests are currently on sale and can be purchased in advance at StarTickets.com, by calling 1-800-585-3737 or in person at the FSU Athletics Ticket Office located inside the Ewigleben Sports Complex.  The box office is open Monday thru Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with extended hours on Wednesday until 7 p.m.  Fans can save over the gameday rates by purchasing in advance.