BLAINE, Minn. – The Bethel men's hockey team fought tooth and nail for a 2-1 double-overtime win over the St. Scholastica Saints in the MIAC semifinal round Saturday evening inside Bethel University Arena. The second-seeded Royals punch their ticket to the championship game – their first since 2007 – and are set to host fifth-seeded St. Olaf at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 2.
BU earned the home ice advantage after the Oles knocked off top-seeded Augsburg in Minneapolis, 4-0. Ticket info and other details will be released next week in preparation for Saturday's matchup.
Improving to 18-5-3 now on the year, BU ties the program record for wins which was set back in 2006-07.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• After a scoreless first overtime, the Royals entered the second overtime ready to light the lamp. And sure enough, the Royals' line of
Jack Brown,
Tyler Braccini, and
Joe Westlund carried the puck right up the ice off the puck drop, and after a scuffle in front of the net, Brown knocked it in for a goal and Royal win in the first 11 seconds of the period.
•
Justin Kelley opened up the scoring for the Royals at 11:11 in the first period with a shot from just past the blue line that sent the puck ricocheting off of the Saints' goaltender and into the net.
• The rest of the first period and entirety of the second period yielded no goals for either team and a tie in shots on goal at 24 all around.
Austin Ryman made several critical saves during the second period to keep the game tied.
• The Saints proved that they weren't going to go down without a fight, scoring on a power-play with six minutes left in the third period. Without a goal to determine a winner in regulation time, the teams headed into the 20-minute 5-on-5 overtime period.
• Ryman finished the night with 40 saves while the penalty kill went 2-for-3.
UP NEXT
The Royals are set to host St. Olaf College next Saturday, March 2, at their home ice in the Blaine Super Rink, for the MIAC Championship matchup. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. Details on gameday timeline for ticket sales will be released next week at BethelRoyals.com.
