Bulldogs Battle #15 Michigan Tech To Overtime - Fall in Game One
Game Highlights
Houghton, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's ice hockey team battled the nationally 15th-ranked Michigan Tech Huskies to an overtime period for the third time in a row, but fell 3-2 in the extra session in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) Quarterfinal game one Friday (March 4) at the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena.
The Huskies took a 1-0 series lead in the best of three quarterfinal series. Ferris State sophomore goaltender Logan Stein made 45 stops in the effort for the Bulldogs.
Michigan Tech had an early edge in chances, but were staved off by Stein in the first period. Early in the second period, the Huskies cashed in. At 5:34 of the second, Logan Ganie picked off a Bulldog pass and rifled a shot to the top right corner for a 1-0 MTU lead.
Ferris State would return fire twice to open up a 2-1 lead in the game.
First, the Bulldogs tied the game at 1-1 when freshman forward Bradley Marek cut across the ice to the bottom of the right faceoff circle, where he redirected a shot by sophomore defenseman Luke Farthing down out of the air.
The puck bounced off the ice and past MTU goaltender Blake Pietila for Marek's team-leading 10th goal of the year. Farthing (5) and freshman defenseman Nico DeVita (2) added assists at 13:36 of the second period.
With the goal, Marek became the first Bulldog freshman to reach double-digit goals since Coale Norris (2017-18).
In the third period, the Bulldog fourth line gave Ferris State their first lead of the night when freshman forward Zach Faremouth crashed the goal from the left wing corner. The puck lay loose for sophomore forward Jacob Dirks, who chipped it over Pietila for his fourth goal of the year at 5:30 of the third period for the 2-1 lead. Faremouth (4) and senior forward Ethan Stewart (8) earned assists on the goal.
The Huskies rebounded to tie the game at 10:50 of the third when Tommy Parrottino finished in tight on the power play to knot the game at 2-2.
Ferris State had a slew of chances in the last minutes, but the game slipped into overtime where the Huskies ended it on the power play. Logan Pietila scored at 2:28 on the man advantage after a diving blocked shot by sophomore forward Stepan Pokorny.
In goal, Stein's 45 stops were a career-best, though he took the loss for Ferris State. Pietila made 15 stops in the win for the Huskies in goal.
Michigan Tech went 2-4 on the power play, while Ferris State went 0-2, though they only had 1:16 of power play time as they took penalties during each power play on the night.
Ferris State looks to stay alive and force a game three on Sunday when they open game two in the best-of-three series Saturday (March 5) at the Macinnes Student Ice Arena at 6:07 pm ET.