GRAND FORKS, N.D. – No. 1 North Dakota got an early lead and held off the No. 9 Omaha hockey team for a 4-1 win on Friday night at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

The Mavericks fell to 13-7-1 overall and 13-7-1-3-0 (1) in the NCHC, keeping them in fourth place.  The Fighting Hawks moved to within three points of clinching the Penrose Cup as NCHC regular season champions.  They improved to 16-4-1 overall and 16-4-1-2-0 (0) in the conference.

Inside the First Period
North Dakota opened the scoring at 10:07 when Jacob Bernard-Docker's shot from the right point beat Isaiah Saville through traffic.

Inside the Second Period
The Fighting Hawks stretched their lead to 3-0 with goals from Jackson Keane and Tyler Kleven.

The Mavericks got on the board late in the period.  Tyler Weiss collected the rebound of a shot by Jason Smallidge that caromed off the end wall, shoveling it past goalie Adam Scheel for his sixth goal of the season.

Inside the Third Period
Jasper Weatherby scored the only goal in the final period, tallying on a power play at 9:31.

Saville finished with 37 saves while Scheel stopped 24.

The two teams conclude the series on Saturday at 6:07 p.m.

GAME NOTES:

• Weiss extended his point-scoring streak to six games (2-7-9).
• The Mavericks killed four of five UND power plays, coming within one second of a perfect night.
• UNO is now 7-13-1 all-time at Ralph Engelstad Arena.  They have been swept in a regular season weekend series in Grand Forks just once in nine prior trips.

Three Stars:  1. Jacob Bernard-Docker/UND (1-2-3); 2. Adam Scheel/Und (24 saves); 3. Jackson Keane (Game-winning goal).