BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The Providence College men's hockey team erupted for five second period goals and went on to an 8-2 victory over Bowling Green State on Friday, October 23 at the BGSU Ice Arena in Bowling Green, Ohio. Sophomore Matt Bergland (Faribault, Minn.) scored three times to lead the Friars marking the first PC hat trick since October 11, 2003. It also marked the most PC goals scored in a game since November 3, 2003.
The first 20 minutes featured back-and-forth action as each team scored twice. The Friars struck first at 4:43 when junior Kyle MacKinnon (Walnut, Calif.) skated down the left wing and fired a shot that was saved by BGSU goalie Nick Eno, However, classmate Ian O'Connor (Londonderry, N.H.) pounced on the puck and lifted a high back hander into the net to give the Friars a 1-0 lead. It marked O'Connor's first goal of the season. The Falcons responded as Mike Dee scored two goals in a span of 5:15 to take a 2-1 lead. Dee connected on his first of the season at 7:07 with a back hander on a breakaway. He then scored on the power play at 12:22. The Friars tied the game at 2-2 when Bergland scored his second of goal of the season at the 16:54 mark. Bergland fired a shot from the bottom of the left circle and into the net. Junior Matt Germain (Rockland, Mass.) and freshman Alex Velishek (Kinnelon, N.J.) assisted on the goal.
The second period was a different story as the Friars outshot the Falcons, 21-4, and scored five times to take a 7-2 lead. Bergland scored his second of the night just 1:19 into the period to give the Friars a 3-2 lead. Senior Chris Eppich (Surrey, B.C.) made the score 4-2 at the 6:14 mark when he ripped a slap shot from the right circle that glanced off the post and into the net. Freshman Aaron Jamnick (Hibbing, Minn.) added to PC's lead when he scored off a re-direction in front of the net after a shot from senior Mark Fayne (Sagamore Beach, Mass.) at 14:41. Jamnick's goal came on the man advantage and it was the first power-play goal for the Friars this season. Bergland then scored on a long slap shot after a turnover to complete his hat trick and give PC a 6-2 cushion at 17:31. Eppich then added to his career night as he scored his second of the game to extend PC's lead to 7-2 after two periods. In the third period, Jamnick added his second power-play goal of the night to make the score, 8-2.
In all, three Friars had multiple goals. In addition to Bergland's career-high three goals, Jamnick and Eppich each scored twice, which are both career highs. MacKinnon finished with a career-high four assists, while Velischek and Fayne added two assists each for the Friars, who scored the most goals of the road January 7, 2001 when they tallied eight at UMass.
The two teams will complete the weekend series on Saturday, October 24 at 7:00 p.m.