Bulldogs Strike First Before #8 Bowling Green Rallies For Win In WCHA Rivalry Matchup

Note: Photo Courtesy Todd Pavlack/BGSUHockey.com

Highlights

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's ice hockey squad jumped out of the gates quickly, but nationally eighth-ranked Bowling Green rallied for a 2-1 victory over FSU as the two longtime conference rivals opened a four-game series on Friday (Feb. 6) night at the BGSU Ice Arena in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Ferris State scored the first goal of the night 14:47 into the opening frame as sophomore forward Gerald Mayhew produced his seventh lamplighter of the campaign off assists from sophomore forward Kyle Schempp and senior Simon Denis on the power play to give FSU a 1-0 lead.

The two assists on the game's initial marker represented the sixth and ninth helpers of the year, respectively, for Schempp and Denis.

FSU's 1-0 advantage stood up thru the rest of the opening frame and the initial 13:28 of the middle stanza before Bowling Green knotted the game back up with an even-strength goal from Ben Murphy. His ninth goal this season was aided by Connor Kucera and Mark Cooper, who tallied their third and ninth assists of the year, respectively.

The two teams stayed even until 8:24 into the final period when BGSU's Kevin Defour scored the eventual game-winner off assists from Adam Berkle and Dan DeSalvo. It was Berkle's 10th assist this year while DeSalvo notched his 13th helper overall.

Ferris State was not able to produce the eventual game-tying goal despite outshooting the Falcons six-to-four in the final 20 minutes of action. Both teams netted 19 shots apiece on the night with FSU posting the higher shot total in two of the three periods.

The two teams combined for 17 penalties on the evening with FSU called seven times for 14 minutes in the box and BGSU whistled for 10 infractions totaling 28 minutes. However, neither team found a lot of success with the man-advantage as FSU went 1-for-8 and the Falcons were shut out in six tries with the man-advantage as FSU's penalty kill unit stood up to the task.

Ferris State senior goaltender CJ Motte took the loss in net despite making 17 saves in 59:09 of work. He stopped seven shots in each of the first two periods followed by three in the final frame.

On the Bowling Green side, Tommy Burke picked up the victory with 18 saves overall, including seven in the opening period followed by five in the second and six in the third.


With the win, the Falcons improved to 16-6-5 overall and 12-4-3 in league play while FSU fell to 11-16-1 overall and 8-11-0 in league action.

The two teams will continue the series on Saturday (Feb. 7) night as they wrap up the two-game weekend set in Ohio. The puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. (ET) and the contest can be heard live on Sunny 97.3 FM and the Bulldog Sports Network online at FerrisStateBulldogs.com.

Following Saturday's matchup, the two teams head to Big Rapids for a two games next weekend on Feb. 13-14 at the Ewigleben Ice Arena. Both games on the FSU campus will also start at 7:07 p.m. (ET) and tickets are on sale now. Call 1-800-585-3737 to purchase or go online at StarTickets.com. 

Fans can purchase one full-priced ticket for Friday's game in Big Rapids and get one free while supplies last thru the FSU Athletics Ticket Office. The Feb. 13 game will also feature a special local Festival of the Arts performance. Meanwhile, Saturday will be Star Wars Night with special characters on hand and two tickets for the Feb. 14 game can be bought for only $14 while supplies last. Call the FSU Athletics Ticket Office at 231-591-2888 for details Monday thru Friday during normal business hours.