Box Score Box Score

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - The University of Nebraska at Omaha hockey team matched the best start in program history Saturday night, grabbing a 5-3 come-from-behind victory over the Falcons of Bowling Green State University at the BGSU Ice Arena.

UNO exploded for three goals in the second period and put the game away with two more in the third. Freshman John Kemp's first collegiate goal in the third frame proved to be the game-winner, while sophomore Joey Martin's bank shot off the sideboards from his own zone into an empty BGSU net put the exclamation point on the Maverick victory.

The Mavericks, now 5-1-0 on the year and 1-1-0-0 in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association play, matched the start by the 2004-05 squad that made it all the way to the Super Six of the CCHA Playoffs. Meanwhile, Bowling Green fell to 3-4-1 overall and 2-2-1-0 in the CCHA.

The game got off to a rocky start for UNO as BGSU's Brandon Svendson put the Mavericks in a 1-0 hole early with a power-play goal at 10:02 of the first. It was the fourth time in six games that the Mavs trailed after the opening period.

But the Maverick's came charging back in the second. Freshman Alex Hudson knotted it a 1-1 on a power-play score 3:26 into the frame. Nick Fanto put the Mavericks on top with a goal at 10:07 and Joey Martin pushed the lead to 3-1 prior to the second intermission, tipping an Eddie DelGrosso slap shot past BGSU goalie Jimmy Spratt at 12:47 of the frame.

Things got interesting in the final stanza as the Falcons pulled even with the Mavericks at 3-all midway through the period on the strenght of a David Solway even-strength goal and a Kai Kantola power-play maker. But the Mavericks came right back and answered the Falcon scores with a pair of their own. Kemp snapped a wrister past Spratt from the top of the circle to put UNO out front and Martin provided the insurance with an empty-netter with just 21 seconds left in the game, putting the game out of reach at 5-3.

UNO was outshot for the second night in-a-row, 39-22. Junior goalie Jerad Kaufmann was up to the challenge though, turning away 36 Falcon shots and coming up with a number of timely saves for the Mavericks on the night.

The Mavericks get little time to savor the win as they are back on the road next weekend, heading to Kalamazoo, Mich. to take on cluster-mate Western Michigan on Nov. 7-8 in a two-game set.

UNO..........0-3-2--5
BGSU........1-0-2--3
W: Kaufmann (3-0)
L: Spratt

First Period
1, BGSU, Brandon Svendson (Dan Sexton), 10:02, PP
Second Period
2, UNO, Alex Hudson (John Kemp, Tomas Klempa), 3:26, PP
3, UNO, Nick Fanto (Matt Ambroz, Alain Goulet), 10:07
4, UNO, Joey Martin (Eddie DelGrosso, Kyle Ensign), 12:47
Third Period
5, BGSU, David Solway (Dan Sexton, Brandon Svendson), 4:55
6, BGSU, Kai Kantola (James Perkin, Tomas Petruska), 8:31, PP
7, UNO, John Kemp (Eddie DelGrosso, Jake Skjodt), 14:36
8, UNO, Joey Martin (unassisted), 19:39

Power Plays: UNO 1-4, BGSU 2-4
Penalties: UNO 5/10, BGSU 5/10
SOG: UNO 7-5-10--22, BGSU 11-12-16--39
Saves: UNO, Kaufmann 36; BGSU, Spratt 17
Attendance: 1,597