Jan. 25, 2003
Beavers tie season high with five goals to complete CHA series sweep

BEMIDJI, Minn. - [box score] The Bemidji State men's hockey team tied its season high with five goals scored, and picked up a combined 12 points from its top two lines of forwards en route to a 5-3 win over College Hockey America rival Air Force. The win gave BSU a critical series sweep, and the Beavers now trail second-place Niagara by just two points for second place in the CHA.

Jeff McGill and Marty Goulet had 1-2=3 points each and Andrew Murray added a goal and an assist for BSU's first line, while Myles Kuharski had 1-1=2 points, Riley Riddell had a goal and Brendan Cook had an assist for the second line. For McGill and Goulet, tonight's efforts marked their season highs for points scored while Kuharski turned in his second multi-point night in as many days.

"Riley [Riddell]'s line got back on track and carried us five-on-five," BSU head coach Tom Serratore said. "Our power play had great puck movement and shot selection, and we finally had two lines clicking."

As it did last night, BSU had to overcome an early Air Force lead. Shane Saum scored at 12:15 of the first period on a delayed penalty goal to put the Falcons ahead 1-0, but it was the last lead the cadets would hold.

The Beavers needed just 2:20 to respond to Saum's marker, as Goulet evened things up at a goal apiece with his ninth goal of the season. The power-play tally at 14:35 was Goulet's ninth goal of the season and his team-leading sixth with the man advantage.

The score would hold at 1-1 until the 2:20 mark of the second, when Kuharski found the back of the net off a feed from McGill and Peter Jonsson to give the Beavers their first lead, 2-1. Ryan Wiggins pulled Air Force even at 9:54 with an even-strength goal, and from there the teams exchanged goals in the second period to take a 3-3 draw into the third. Riddell put BSU back on top with his fifth goal of the year at 11:49, and Scott Zwiers helped the cadets take advantage of a penalty on Kuharski for checking the goalie with a power-play marker at 19:36 of the second to earn the tie.

But BSU put the game away with two goals in the third. McGill scored 1:20 into the stanza with helpers from Anders Olsson and Goulet to put BSU ahead for good, 4-3. It was McGill's second game-winner this season and 14th of his career. Murray salted the win away for BSU with a power-play goal at 5:00 of the third for the game's final 5-3 margin.

Grady Hunt turned in another solid effort in net for Bemidji State, saving 24 of 26 shots faced to earn his second consecutive win. He saw his record improve to 7-5-3 on the season and has won back-to-back decisions for the first time since a four-start winning streak from Nov. 15-Dec. 2, 2002. David Goodley had 35 saves and surrendered five goals in 58:39 for Air Force in the losing effort.

In stark contrast to last night's game in which neither team committed a penalty in the first period and eventually combined for just 11 minor penalties, a chippy Air Force team put up 11 minor penalties by itself and the teams combined to spend 36 minutes in the penalty box. Air Force went 1 for 5 on the power-play while BSU took advantage of two of its eight chances with the man advantage.

BSU's five goals in the contest ties the team's season high, set in a 5-5 draw with Union College on Oct. 26, 2002. It also marked the sixth time in their last seven meetings the Beavers have managed four or more goals against the Falcons. BSU's five goals tonight tied for its second-most ever in a game against Air Force.

The win leaves BSU unbeaten in its last five games against Air Force (4-0-1), its longest unbeaten streak in the series. BSU improves to 9-5-2 all-time against Air Force, with its nine wins being the program's most against any CHA opponent. The win also improved Serratore to 4-0-1 as a head coach against his older brother Frank, the Air Force head coach.

With tonight's win, Bemidji State improves to 7-8-6 on the season while Air Force drops to 8-17-1. The Beavers pick up two points in College Hockey America play, improving to 5-3-2 in the league and moving to 12 points. Air Force falls to 2-9-1 against the circuit and holds at five points. BSU now trails Niagara by just two points for second place in the league. BSU is back in action Jan. 31-Feb. 1with a two-game home series against Findlay.

SCORING SUMMARY
1/12:15/A - Shane Saum (4, DP) (Spanky Leonard/7, Brian Reaney/17) / 0-1
1/14:35/B - Marty Goulet (9, PP) (Andrew Murray/10, Jeff McGill/5) / 1-1
2/2:20/B - Myles Kuharski (6) (Jeff McGill/6, Peter Jonsson/8) / 2-1
2/9:54/A - Ryan Wiggins (11) (Josh Priewe/2, Buck Kozlowski/4) / 2-2
2/11:49/B - Riley Riddell (5) (Myles Kuharski/7, Brendan Cook/2 ) / 3-2
2/19:36/A - Scott Zwiers (10, PP) (Andy Berg/15, Brian Reaney/18) / 3-3
3/1:20/B - Jeff McGill (7, GW) (Anders Olsson/7, Marty Goulet/8) / 4-3 / GW
3/5:00/B - Andrew Murray (5, PP) (Marty Goulet/9, Peter Jonsson/9) / 5-3

USAF: David Goodley (59:39 / 17-9-9=35 saves / 5 GA / L, 1-1-0); empty net (1:21 / 0 GA)
BSU: Grady Hunt (60:00 / 5-12-7=24 saves / 2 GA / W, 7-5-3)
Penalties/Power Plays: USAF: 11-22/1-5; BSU: 7-14/2-8
three stars: 1/Jeff McGill, BSU; 2/Marty Goulet, BSU; 3/Myles Kuharski, BSU