BOWLING GREEN — A sweep of a Big Ten team would’ve gone a long way for Bowling Green in the second week of the season, but the Falcons came up just short on Saturday night against Michigan State.
After scoring the first goal of the evening, Bowling Green allowed a late power play winner to Spartans right wing Daniel Russell to give Michigan State a 2-1 win and series split.
Bowling Green won the opening faceoff, and the Falcons went on the power play after the Spartans were called for having too many men on the ice, but senior right wing Alex Barber had a shot blocked at close range. Bowling Green recovered mere seconds later with a goal from sophomore left wing Ryan O’Hara, assisted by sophomore center Austen Swankler and sophomore defenseman Eric Parker.
“Ryan’s playing really well,” coach Ty Eigner said. “The kind of effort Ryan’s been giving us every year here, you’re seeing it every day. He’s got a really good work ethic and a motor. He creates things for himself and it’s fun to see.”
Another Michigan State penalty — a high-sticking call on left wing Tiernan Shoudy — gave Bowling Green a golden opportunity at the first period’s midpoint, but the Falcons couldn’t convert. Sophomore goaltender Christian Stoever proved unshakeable in net in the early going, amassing 17 saves in the first period.
Senior defenseman Max Coyle drew the Falcons’ first penalty at 12:54, getting sent to the box for unsportsmanlike conduct. Stoever vacuumed up a pair of shots in the final 30 seconds of the power play to keep the Spartans off the board, and the teams entered the first intermission with Bowling Green leading 1-0.
The Falcons made a goalie change to start the second period, bringing in senior Zack Rose for Stoever a night after Rose backstopped Bowling Green to a 3-1 win over Michigan State in East Lansing. The Spartans immediately pounced on Rose as Shoudy fired home the tying goal at 2:50 — the first of his collegiate career. Stoever returned to goal less than a minute later.
“Christian was really, really good tonight. I don’t know what happened, but he had to get a few stitches in his finger,” Eigner said. “He was able to pick up right where he left off.”
Michigan State went on the power play after freshman right wing Quinn Emerson was called for roughing at 8:29, but the Falcons killed off the penalty. Another tussle broke out in front of Stoever seconds later, and this time it was Spartans left wing Jagger Joshua penalized for slashing.
The game remained tied after an 11-save period for Stoever. Bowling Green took a 16-5 advantage in blocked shots into the final frame, paced by three from freshman defenseman Dalton Norris.
Michigan State opened the third period by taking seven shots on goal before Swankler took the Falcons’ first. Bowling Green went on the power play at 7:17 after an illegal check by Spartans defenseman Cole Krygier, but the Spartans withstood good looks for Norris and Swankler to kill it off.
“There just wasn’t enough urgency tonight,” O’Hara said. “They were beating us to too many 50-50 pucks.”
A boarding call on senior defenseman Hunter Lellig was upgraded to a major penalty after a Michigan State challenge, putting the Falcons behind the eight-ball in the final five minutes. Russell scored the go-ahead goal at 16:15 to lift Michigan State to victory.
“Those are dangerous plays,” Eigner said. “It was just an unfortunate play. Hunter’s not that kind of player... We did a good job the first two minutes of the kill, but that’s a tough ask with two minutes left in a game.”
First Published October 9, 2022, 2:07 a.m.
