Irish sweep Falcons in weekend series
By JEFF BALTRUZAK
Sports Writer
The win came in the least likely way.
Defenseman Evan Nielsen had yet to score in any of Notre Dame's previous 33 games this season, yet he found himself on a breakaway with the score tied and less than a minute left in the game Saturday night in the Joyce Center. Bowling Green goalie Tyler Masters felt Nielsen nudge the puck just inside the left post, heard the siren wail, and saw Nielsen's stick thrust into the air in celebration.
The sophomore Nielsen's improbable shorthanded goal put Notre Dame up on Bowling Green 4-3, and after an empty-netter, the final read 5-3, placing the Irish in a three-way tie with Lake Superior State and Bowling Green in the 10th and last playoff position in the CCHA.
"It couldn't have come at a better time," said Nielsen. "We needed people to step up and make a big play, and I was just glad I was able to make the play we needed then."
Entering the weekend, Notre Dame needed a sweep of the Falcons to even have a chance of making the postseason. With Friday's 3-2 win, the Irish bettered their league record to 5-14-4.
Saturday's first period was a sign of how the game would go for the Irish. Dan Carlson and Connor Dunlap both netted goals in a three-minute span, and suddenly Notre Dame was sitting pretty at 2-0.
But Bowling Green, with as much riding on this contest as the Irish, brought the score to 2-1 when Curtis Valentine took advantage of the power play.
Notre Dame has struggled the entire season while a man down, and Saturday night was no exception as the Falcons converted on two of their five power plays.
The second period would go solidly to Bowling Green, which sandwiched two goals by Austin de Luis and Valentine around Ryan Dolder's goal at 10:04. Dolder was assisted by freshman Aaron Gill and Nielsen.
"We were playing 20 minutes for our entire season," said Nielsen.
The uneasy 3-3 tie was held for over 19 minutes in the third period. Notre Dame fired 22 shots at Masters in the period, after only 16 shots the rest of the game. The Falcons managed only six shots on Irish goalie Tony Zasowski, as Notre Dame's defenders tightened and kept the puck consistently above the Irish blue line.
Just when overtime seemed imminent, Carlson, a left winger, flipped a long distance pass to Nielsen from deep inside the Irish zone to assist in Nielsen's go-ahead score.
"We had a good week of practice, and I knew we had a really good chance to beat Bowling Green," said Zasowski.
Of course, had the Irish not won Friday night's contest, Saturday would have been a skating exhibition.
On Friday, Freshman Rob Globke had a hand in all three Irish goals, putting two into the net himself, and Zasowski withstood an especially brutal second period to lead the Domers to victory.
Head coach Dave Poulin has rotated goalies all season, but Zasowki has received the nod in the last six games. Poulin told the sophomore Zasowki during Thursday's practice he would start over Kyle Kolquist and Jeremiah Kimento.
"All I could do to prepare was think about the weekend," said Zasowski. "I knew I could play my game and we could win."
As it has many times this season, the Irish offense was sparked by Carlson. He took a shot on Masters late in the first with Notre Dame on the power play. Globke passed the shot over to the center Dunlap, who quickly scored.
Early in the second, Notre Dame failed to kill a Falcon power play as Marc Brown put his third goal of the season past Zasowksi. But it was the only shot out of 16 that would find the Irish net in the second twenty minutes Friday.
Zasowski was solid between the pipes, frustrating shooter after shooter.
"Seeing Tony make big plays really brought up the play of the team," said Nielsen. "I had a couple of bad shifts in there, and I felt like I owed it to the guys playing well to step up."
Notre Dame managed only two shots in the second period, but still scored when Rob Globke scored his 13th of the season unassisted.
The freshman is tied for the team lead in goals with Carlson and Dolder, and sports the best shooting percentage on the team, with 18.7 percent.
Bowling Green again found the net on a power play when Scott Hewson beat Zasowski at 5:35. The 2-2 tie continued until 12:54, when Carlson once more assisted Globke for the eventual winning goal.
Having completed its most successful weekend of the 2000-01 season, Notre Dame looks to continue to roll against nemesis Michigan in Ann Arbor on Friday. The Wolverines gutted the Irish 9-0 on Jan. 23.
"We can't think about last time," commented Zasowski. "I know we can do well on Friday night."
All Sports Stories for Monday, February 12, 2001
