Nov. 27, 2004
Final Stats
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Penalties and the fine goaltending of Bowling Green's Jordan Sigalet stole a close 2-1 decision away from the RedHawks at the BGSU Ice Arena, despite a gutsy performance by Miami which was playing with only 17 skaters.
The RedHawks and Falcons again flew out of the gates, racing up and down the ice throughout much of the first period. At 10:37, the RedHawks gained the upper hand as sophomore Andy Nelson (Superior, Wis.) received a charge from the Falcons' James Unger, putting Miami on a five-minute power play. After hustling the puck around the ice for the first thee-plus minutes of the penalty, the RedHawks got on the board when junior Andy Greene (Trenton, Mich.) dug the puck out from behind the net, slid it to senior Todd Grant (Indianapolis, Ind.) who found Chris Busby (Kenilworth, Ill.) high in the slot. Busby ripped off a one-timer over the shoulder of Sigalet for the goal. The goal was Busby's first since Feb. 14, 2004 at Michigan, a stretch of 23 games.
In the second period, the RedHawks were forced to kill penalty after penalty throughout the first half of the period, letting Bowling Green take control of the action. The Falcons finally got on the board at the 9:25 mark of the period, lighting the lamp on their fifth man-advantage of the game. It would be the RedHawks' power-play that would let them down as they turned the puck over at mid-ice and Bowling Green skated in for a short-handed go-ahead goal at 11:26. BGSU ended the period with a 10-8 advantage in shots on goal.
In the third period, Miami could not muster anything on the hot hand of BGSU's Sigalet who stopped all six shots he faced as the Falcons skated away with a 2-1 win.
Sigalet finished with 21 saves in all, while. Miami netminder sophomore Brandon Crawford-West was almost as masterful in net, stopping 18-of-20 shots and has allowed two or fewer goals in his last four games.
Miami kept itself fighting from behind most of the night due to penalties, taking 12 for 32 minutes compared to Bowling Green who had seven penalties for 17 minutes. The Miami penalty-killing unit kept the RedHawks in the game, holding off 9-of-10 BGSU man advantages, while the power play scored once in six tries.
The RedHawks (5-8-1, 3-6-1 CCHA) go in search of their second straight home win next weekend when they host Robert Morris for two at the Goggin Ice Arena.
Game Notes: SR D Chris Busby broke out of a 23-game goal-less streak that dated back to Feb. 14, 2004 at Michigan, in the first period with a power-play goal ... SR F Todd Grant extended his point-scoring streak to three games with an assist on Busby's goal.
