The No. 3 Pioneers faced a tough opponent in Western Michigan as the Pioneers fell in both games on Friday and Saturday 3-1 and 5-1, respectively. The two losses over the weekend snapped the Pioneers eight-game unbeaten streak and put the Pioneers at 14-6-3 on the season.

The No. 3 Pioneers faced a tough opponent in Western Michigan as the Pioneers fell in both games on Friday and Saturday 3-1 and 5-1, respectively. The two losses over the weekend snapped the Pioneers eight-game unbeaten streak and put the Pioneers at 14-6-3 on the season.

In the Friday’s game, the Pioneers were outworked by Western Michigan until freshman Emilio Pettersen (Manglerud, Norway) found freshman Brett Stapley (Campbell River, B.C.) for a shot off the post during a power play in the closing minutes of the second period. The Pioneers would break through at 6:06 in the third, when junior Liam Finlay (Kelowna, B.C.) deflected fellow junior Michael Davies’ (St. Louis, MO), shot into the goal.

On Saturday, the Pioneers struggled as Western Michigan went up by five goals during the first two periods. It was not until Pettersen’s power-play goal at 4:24 in the third period to ruin the shutout for Western Michigan. The team combined for 48 penalty minutes. Freshman Filip Larsson (Stockholm, Sweden) combined for 41 saves over the two games and fellow freshman Michael Corson (Darien, Ill.) stopped 10 in 30:48.

The Pioneers will look to bounce back in Magness Arena as they take on North Dakota this weekend with puck drop at 7:07 p.m. MST on Friday and Saturday.