The University of North Dakota hockey team achieved a two-game sweep over Bemidji State, securing victories in two recent matchups. In the first game on Saturday, UND defeated Bemidji State 4-3 in a close contest.
UND’s Will Zellers scored two power-play goals in the first period, with Cole Reschny, Mac Swanson, and Ethan MacKenzie contributing assists. Bemidji State responded with a goal from Rylan Gould, assisted by Brayden Dube, before the end of the first period. The second period saw Bemidji State’s Ethan Miedema, assisted by Oliver Peer and Maxon Vig, tie the game. Mac Swanson, assisted by Gavin Lindberg and Zellers, then put UND back in the lead. In the third period, Jaksen Panzer, with an assist from Luke Roelofs, once again tied the score for Bemidji State. Jack Kernan ultimately secured the win for UND with a goal in the third period, assisted by Sam Laurila and Hudson Malinoski. Following his goal, Kernan celebrated with fans, with teammate Malinoski joining him. UND goaltender Jan Spunar made 19 saves, while Bemidji State’s Raythan Robbins recorded 40 saves. Bemidji State incurred 23 minutes in penalties, including four minors, one major, and one game misconduct, while UND received two minors for four minutes.
In the second game, the University of North Dakota completed the sweep with a 3-2 victory. Bemidji State's Will Dawson, assisted by Jaksen Panzer and Jiri Klima, opened the scoring. Cole Reschny, assisted by Will Zellers, quickly equalized for UND. In the second period, Ethan Miedema scored unassisted for Bemidji State. Mac Swanson, assisted by Cooper Simpson and Zellers, tied the game with a power-play goal. Cole Reschny, assisted by Zellers and Sam Laurila, scored the decisive goal for UND in the third period. UND goaltender Jan Spunar made 18 saves, and Bemidji State’s Max Hildebrand made 27 saves. Both teams received three minor penalties for six minutes each.
Meanwhile, the University of Mary Marauders faced a 5-2 defeat against Drury. Drury began the game strongly in the first period with goals from Jamison St. Clair, Nolan Bowsher, and Kevin Thomas Walters. Bowsher was assisted by Levi Brewer and Jake Neufeld, while Walters received assists from Luke Aston and Lucas Sadownyk. The Marauders' Dylan Cunningham, assisted by Levi Flatley and Crae Dawson, scored in the first period. Russell Kosec added another goal for Drury in the second period, assisted by Bowsher and Faris Meddeb. In the third period, Mary's Joe Gronholz scored unassisted. Alex Edwards then scored unassisted for Drury, finalizing their victory. Mary’s goaltenders, Zane Clausen and Caleb Cross, combined for 28 saves, with Clausen making 12 and Cross making 16. Drury’s Matthew Candusso stopped 30 shots. Both the University of Mary and Drury received two minors and one game misconduct, totaling 14 minutes in penalties for each team.
The University of Mary moved to the Division I level of ACHA hockey for the 2023-24 season. Since this transition, the team has "topped out at winning a single game" at that level. The Marauders did recently secure a victory against Jamestown, a win attributed to a strong start. The University of North Dakota's hockey season also opened recently with exhibition games against Augustana and Manitoba.
