Carter Rapalje scored two second period goals and Hobie Hedquist made 48 saves for Ferris State Hockey as the Bulldogs defeated reigning national champion and top-ranked Western Michigan University at Lawson Ice Arena on banner night Thursday (Oct. 9).

The Bulldogs (1-2-0) opened their home-and-home series against WMU in Kalamazoo on a night where the Broncos (0-1-0) raised their national championship banner from last season. It was Head Coach Brett Riley's first win as a Bulldog.

Hedquist's save total was the most of his career, and the most by a Bulldog since Dec. 28, 2024 when Noah West had 51 against Wisconsin. Gavin Best scored his first career game-winning goal in the victory, which marked the Bulldogs' first win at Lawson Ice Arena since Oct. 9, 2015 – 10 years to the day. It was also FSU's first victory over a defending national champion since 2005 and the first win against WMU since Oct. 7, 2017.

WMU struck first with the only goal in the first period at 14:08. Freshman Bobby Cowan scored his first collegiate goal with assists going to Joona Vaisanen and Iiro Hakkarainen.

Hedquist made 12 saves in the first period as FSU was outshot 13-6. Both teams had a power play try but successfully killed their penalties.

Rapalje lit the lamp 40 seconds into the second period for his first goal as a Bulldog. Logan Heroux threw a pass off the glass from FSU's defensive zone that found Rapalje streaking past the Broncos' defense. He skated into the slot and fired a shot past WMU goaltender Hampton Slukynsky, tying the game 1-1. Heroux collected his first assist of the season.

Rapalje capped off a strong second period with another goal at 18:41. Caden Brown won a puck battle up against the boards that found Rapalje who skated through the left-wing circle and past two Bronco defenders for a quick wrist shot to the top-right corner. Rapalje had 10 multi-point games last season with Long Island and earned his first as a Bulldog Thursday.

Just over a minute into the third period, Max Dukovac was whistled for holding and FSU headed to the penalty kill. Then, only 37 seconds later, Riley Wallack was called for cross checking, giving the Broncos a 5-on-3 advantage. However, the Bulldogs stood tall and killed both penalties, preserving their 2-1 lead.

WMU tied the game with a goal from Liam Valente at 6:33 in the third period. Zach Nehring and Zack Sharp assisted as the Broncos evened the score 2-2.

However, at 16:26, Best scored the game-winning goal unassisted after a Bulldog power play wrapped up. Best forced a turnover in the right corner, skated towards net and fired a shot that beat Slukynsky, putting FSU up 3-2. Best's first of the season represented his first career game-winning tally.

The Broncos pulled Slukynsky at 17:11, and FSU faced an extra attacker for the final 2:49 of regulation. Christopher Lie was penalized for boarding at 19:04, forcing the Bulldogs to skate down two men for 54 seconds. Hedquist made two saves in that time and preserved his first win as a Bulldog.

Hedquist saved six shots in the final 2:49 and had eight saves on the penalty kill. Lie and Xavier Jean-Louis led the team with three blocks apiece, and Logan Heroux had a crucial block while the Broncos had the extra attacker on late. Rapalje, Best and Holden Doell each fired three shots on goal. Brown led the team with a +2 rating.

In total, Ferris State had 18 shots on goal, 12 blocked shots, won 28 faceoffs, went 0-2 on the power play and a perfect 5-5 on the penalty kill. The Broncos had 50 shots on goal, blocked eight shots and won 49 faceoffs.

Ferris State will conclude the series against Western Michigan at home Friday (Oct. 10) in the Ewigleben Ice Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. (ET) with pregame coverage beginning on Sunny 97.3 FM at 6:30 p.m. (ET). The game will be streamed live on Midco Sports Plus.com

Release courtesy of Ferris State Athletics.