Minnesota Duluth, which got into the NCAA tournament by .0001 points and came from behind to knock off Minnesota State in overtime on Friday, won the West Regional on Saturday in Sioux Falls, defeating Air Force 2-1.
Air Force, which shocked St. Cloud State, the No. 1 overall seed in the national tournament on Friday, mustered just 12 shots, none in the first period. That was the second time UMD held an opponent to no shots on goal, doing that to MSU in the second period Friday.
Joey Anderson and Nick Wolff scored first-period goals for the Bulldogs, and they held on from there.
Air Force goalie Billy Christopoulos was rock-solid again on Saturday, stopping 24 shots, but got little help from his offense until 6:16 remained in the third period. That's when Evan Giesler scored on the power play, making for a thrilling finish that included a couple of Grade A scoring chances for Air Force with the goalie pulled for an extra attacker.
Minnesota Duluth will move on to the Frozen Four in St. Paul, the same location where it won the national championship in 2011. It's also the Bulldogs' second consecutive trip to the Frozen Four. They lost in the title game to Denver last year.
The final had a crowd of 8,015, just a little more than Friday's. Very nice crowds for an NCAA regional. Having three Minnesota teams in really helped the attendance, but Sioux Falls should be considered again for another regional soon.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Forward — Carson Kuhlman, Minnesota Duluth, Most Outstanding Player
Forward — Parker Mackay Minnesota Duluth
Forward — Tyler Ledford, Air Force
Defense — Dylan Samberg, Minnesota Duluth
Defense —Nick Wolff, Minnesota Duluth
Goalie — Billy Christopolous, Air Force
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