MANKATO, Minn. – Brian Carrabes whisked a pass from the offensive left dot to the weak side of the crease and Adam Eisele tapped it across the line for the game's only goal. Luke Ashton's hard pass through a pair of defenders started the play as No. 28 Minnesota State defeated No. 26 Omaha 1-0 Saturday night in a series sweep over the aptly named Mavericks from the state of Nebraska.

"It was a group effort," Ashton said. "If it wasn't for Moravec winning that wall battle, I wouldn't have gotten the puck. Carbs made a good pass as well and obviously Eyes finished."
 
It was Eisele's third goal of the season and MSU's first shot on target, 14:06 into the game. Though heavily outshot through the first two periods, the Mavericks thwarted high-danger chances and controlled play in the third to close out UNO, an NCHC non-conference foe.
 
At the conclusion of the contest, Minnesota State captain Josh Groll was presented with the Spirit of the Maverick trophy, awarded to the series winner since both teams joined the Division I ranks at the same time.
 
Junior Goaltender Alex Tracy earned his fifth career shutout (second of the season) with 27 stops. Tracy totaled 53 saves on the weekend and holds a .938 save percentage through seven starts.

"Just keeping them to the outside was a high emphasis.," said Ashton. "Keeping shots out of the middle. Tracy played an amazing game and definitely kept us in it."
 
Eisele's goal was the Mavericks' second of the season on the power play, and the team's penalty kill came out unscathed on four opportunities, including three in the third period. MSU finished 1-4 with the extra attacker.

"Good for the guys," said head coach Luke Strand. "I think we found a different way to win. We stuck together. There were some thin moments of the game and some things we did well. It was a little bit of bend don't break."
 
Tracy stood tall in the final minutes, with Omaha's netminder at the bench. Groll led the squad with four of MSU's 17 shots on goal. Simon Latkoczy made 15 saves in the loss.
 
Minnesota State (5-3-1, 0-0-0 CCHA) is on the road to begin CCHA play next weekend against Bemidji State (2-3-0, 0-0-0). The Mavericks and Beavers play on Friday, November 1 at 7:07 p.m. and Saturday, November 2 at 6:07 p.m.

MSU finished its six-game homestand 4-2 and has four wins over Top-20 ranked opponents so far.