Mankato, Minn. --- Ferris State jumped out to an early lead and held on the rest of the way to earn a 2-1 win over 11th-rated Minnesota State in Central Collegiate Hockey Association action in Mankato, Minn., Friday.
Now 8-6-1 for the season with tonight's result, Minnesota State stands 5-3-1 in CCHA games.
Despite owning a 13-6 advantage in shots on goal, the Mavericks found themselves trailing 2-0 after the first 20 minutes of action. Forward Tyler Schleppe fired a shot from the slot and collected the rebound before backhanding the puck past Keenan Rancier at 5:55. Defenseman Ben Schultheis scored his first career goal with a shot from between the circles that appeared to bounce off a body prior to entering the net at 12:27.
The Mavericks outshot the Bulldogs by a 10-4 margin in the second period, but the score stood as it did at the end of the second, with Ferris State maintaining its 2-0 lead.
Junior center David Silye's power play marker at 1:59 of the third made it a one-goal game, but the host Mavericks were unable to solve Ferris State netminder Noah Giesbrecht in the final 18 minutes. The goal is Silye's team-leading 12th of the year and his sixth power play goal.
The Mavericks outshot the Bulldogs by a 34-13 margin in the contest and were one-for-two in power play chances.
Ferris State improved to 5-6-2 overall, 3-3-1 CCHA with tonight win, which was played in front of 4,199 fans.
The two teams close out the two-game league series Saturday night with a 6:07 faceoff scheduled for Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center.
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