Jan. 15, 2011

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OXFORD, Ohio - Reilly Smith and Andy Miele connected twice on one-time shots to lead No. 12 Miami to their second weekend sweep of Bowling Green this year with a 3-1 win Saturday night at Steve Cady Arena. The RedHawks (13-8-3, 10-6-2-1 CCHA) beat the Falcons (7-17-2, 2-14-2-0 CCHA) for the fourth time this season and 11th time in a row.

Miami goaltender Cody Reichard made a team season-high 30 saves to win his second straight game as he is now 9-4-0 on the season. Trent Vogelhuber scored the game-winner at 7:57 of the first period and assisted on the team's first goal.

Bowling Green opened the game on the attack, forcing Reichard to make three saves in the first minute. The Falcons continued to pressure the Miami defense over the first five minutes of the game but Reichard was up to the challenge, stopping the first eight shots he faced.

The Falcons' aggressive play paid off when they took a faceoff to Reichard's left and scored on a cross-ice one-timer from Brett Mohler to Andrew Wallace for the early 1-0 Bowling Green lead at 5:27 of the first period.

That lead proved to be short-lived as the RedHawks converted on just their second shot on goal when Miele found Smith for a one-timer at 6:29 of the opening period. Vogelhuber carried the puck into the attacking zone and sent it to Miele low in the left faceoff circle. Miele drew the defense and BG goaltender Andrew Hammond toward him with a shot-fake before crossing to Smith in the right circle for the equalizer, making the score 1-1. Bowling Green had held a 9-0 shot advantage over the first six minutes of the game before Miami mounted an offensive charge.

At 7:57 of the first period, Vogelhuber got behind the Falcon defense and took a pass from Smith just as he crossed the blue line. With a step on his defender, he moved in from the left side and flipped it over the goalie's glove with a backhand shot, finding the open side of the net for the 2-1 Miami lead. Carter Camper earned the second assist on the play.

The RedHawks extended the lead to 3-1 on a similar play to Miami's first goal. Miele took a pass from Chris Wideman at center ice and moved to his left up ice. From the left circle, he sent a perfectly placed cross to Smith, who found the back of the net at 11:36 of the first frame. With the assist, Miele moved into a tie with Camper atop the national points list and maintained his national lead in assists. Miele has 11 goals and 28 assists while Camper has 13 goals and 26 assists for 39 points each this season.

The two teams skated an even second period with no goals for either side. The `Hawks held a narrow 13-12 shot margin and just one penalty was called, a cross checking call on the RedHawks, coming with only three seconds left to play in the stanza.

Miami focused on defense in the third period as the Red and White held off the Falcons' attempts to cut into the lead. Reichard made seven saves and several RedHawk skaters blocked shots in the final frame to preserve the win and secure their third weekend sweep of the season.

The RedHawks go on the road the next two weekends with a trip to Michigan State Jan. 21-22 followed by a series at first-place Notre Dame Jan. 28-29.

--MURedHawks.com--