Ferris State Suffers Setback In WCHA Weekend Opener

Postgame Highlights

Big Rapids, Mich. – The Ferris State University men's ice hockey team erased a second intermission deficit to fight for a 3-3 tie with the nationally #12 ranked Bowling Green State Falcons on Friday (Dec. 7) at Ewigleben Ice Arena in Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) play.

The Falcons picked up the extra WCHA point winning the ensuing shootout 1-0.

For the Bulldogs, sophomore forward Frankie Melton picked up a pair of assists to lead the team in point scoring, while freshman forward Justin Michaelian notched his first collegiate goal in the contest.

Ferris State got on the board first when sophomore forward Lucas Finner chipped in his first goal of the season at 11:30 of the first period on the power play. Melton and junior forward Jason Tackett played tic-tac from corner to corner and hit the toe when Finner, standing at the top of the crease shot the puck off the stick of BGSU netminder Ryan Bednard, who deflected it over himself and into the goal for a 1-0 Bulldog lead. Melton earned his third assist of the season while Tackett added his fifth.

Bowling Green netted back to back goals, first at 5:06 of the second period when Max Johnson evened the contest at 1-1, followed by a Brandon Kruse tally at 11:26 of the middle frame on the power play for a 2-1 Falcon lead.

A late second period fall after a save forced Ferris State junior goaltender Justin Kapelmaster to leave the game, and freshman netminder Roni Salmekangas came in to relieve Kapelmaster and made two stops in the second period.

In the third, Ferris State knotted the game at 2-2 when redshirt junior forward Oskar Andren pounded his second goal of the season past Bednard at the right goal post, from Melton (4) and junior defenseman Cam Clarke (5).

At 8:43 of the third, Ferris State's Michaelian came down the slot into a swarm of BGSU defenders and lost the puck. It slid back to him off a stick and Michaelian slapped it through the legs of Bednard for his first collegiate goal and a 3-2 Bulldog lead. Freshman defenseman Cooper Zech (9) and junior forward Dom Lutz (1) earned assists on Michaelian's first collegiate goal.

The Falcons tied the game again at 17:19 when Cameron Wright fired in his fifth of the year to even it at 3-3, which went down as the game-tying goal.

In overtime, Salmenkangas made two saves in the extra session for Ferris State while Bednard stopped several chances by senior forward Corey Mackin to preserve the tie. Salmenkangas made six strong saves in the three-on-three overtime session for Ferris State as well.

The Falcons won the shootout on a goal by Taylor Schneider for the extra WCHA point. BGSU outshot Ferris State 35-24 for the game. The Bulldogs went 1-2 on the power play and held Bowling Green 1-5.

Ferris State's Salmenkangas and Bowling Green's Bednard each earned the tie for their respective teams
The Bulldogs and Falcons wrap up the series at Ewigleben Ice Arena on Saturday (Dec. 8) on Teddy Bear Toss Night at 7:07 pm EST.