COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Western Michigan hockey team took down Ohio State, 3-1, on the road at Value City Arena in exhibition action on Saturday afternoon.  

The Broncos picked up goals from Ethen Frank, Josh Passolt and Luke Grainger, while goalie Brandon Bussi played the full 60 minutes and made 25 saves.  Shots were tied up at 26-26 and WMU went 1-for-4 on the power play, while holding OSU scoreless on four.  

"The game was very valuable for our players and our staff," said first-year head coach Pat Ferschweiler. "It allowed us to identify points of our game that are strong and other areas that need work. I thought we faced some adversity in the second period as Ohio State played at a very high pace. We answered with a strong push back in the third period and I'm very proud of our effort." 

Frank scored on the power play at 7:37 in the first period to give the Broncos the early 1-0 lead. Drew Worrad and Michael Joyaux picked up assists on the goal. 

WMU held the 1-0 lead into the second period but Georgii Merkulov tied it up at 1-1 with a goal in the 4:29. Cam Thiesing and Kamil Salocha picked up assists on the goal.  

The two teams continued to battle tied at 1-1 until Josh Passolt put the Broncos ahead for a second time at 13:58 in the third period. Rhett Kingston and Daniel Hilsendager picked up assists on the game-winning goal. 

Just 25 seconds later Luke Grainger scored unassisted to put the game out of reach.  

Western Michigan opens the 2021-22 regular season hosting rival Ferris State next Friday at 7:05 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 1-888-4-WMUTIX or online at www.wmubroncos.com/tickets. The Broncos travel to FSU on Saturday for a 7:07 p.m. start.