By Ben Shanahan
Special to the Sentinel-Tribune
SIOUX FALLS, S.D.– Bowling Green Hockey fell to Augustana, 4-1, on Sunday at Denny Sanford Premier Arena.
For the Falcons, they saw two players make their NCAA collegiate debut in game two of the Augustana series.
Six-foot-6 freshman goaltender Cole Moore started out rough, giving up three first-period goals, but leveled out, saving 26 oF 30 Viking shots with an .867 save percentage.
Fellow freshman Gustav Stjernberg from Enebyberg, Sweden, started on the first defensive pairing for the Falcons, tallying two shots on goal with a zero plus-minus.
For the Vikings, former Falcon Zack Rose once again shined in the net for the second game in a row, saving 43 of 44 shots for a .977 save percentage.
Augustana started off red hot, using the momentum from Saturday night’s 3-2 win over the Falcons, taking the lead just over five minutes into play as a sprawled out Moore saved the aggressive Vikings first couple of attempts but gave up his first collegiate goal as Uula Ruikka fired one from the left faceoff circle.
The Vikings built off that early goal. With 9:04 left in the first, the Falcons coughed up a puck right in front of their own net, right to a wide open Hunter Bischoff, who fired a puck past Moore, making it 2-0.
Disaster continued to strike the Falcons as early as a minute after the second goal, when Augustana scored again. This time Brady Zimmer from the point shot a puck that a screened Moore never saw, making it 3-0 with 8:22 left in the opening frame.
Bowling Green went on the power play with 6:09 left as Evan McIntyre was called for roughing. The power play did not last long, as 26 seconds later, BG sophomore Dalton Norris was whistled for two minutes after a holding call.
Both teams ended the period on a 4-on-4 with BGSU junior defenseman Ben Wozney going to the sin bin first with 1:43 left on a roughing call, shoving a Viking after the whistle.
Then, a minute and three seconds later, Ruikka committed a slashing penalty. Augustana killed off both penalties, forcing the Falcon’s power play to go 0-for-7 in the series with a Viking in the box.
The Falcons finally got one past Rose as Michael Bevilacqua earned his first collegiate point. His shot was wide of the net but bounced off the boards perfectly to a waiting junior, Ryan O’Hara, scoring his first of the season and his 16th career goal.
The third period started off with an odd delay as the Zamboni would apply too much water to the ice, delaying the start of the final 20 minutes as both teams sat on the bench waiting for the all-clear.
Six minutes and 10 seconds after the delay, the Vikings put the sweep on ice as Ryan Naumovski and Brett Meerman pulled off the hidden puck trick behind the net, having both skaters wrap around and Meerman bury the puck, giving Augustana the 4-1 win.
Bowling Green plays a home and home series when they face Western Michigan. The series starts Friday, Oct. 20 in Slater Family Ice Arena at 7:07 p.m. This game will serve as Pediatric Cancer Night as well as Family Night.
On Saturday, Oct. 21 the Falcons and Broncos face off in Lawson Ice Arena in Kalamazoo, Michigan with the puck drop set for 7 p.m.
