NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. - For the second consecutive game, the Niagara men's hockey team (6-13-2, 2-4-1 CHA) fell into a 2-0 hole, but this time were unable to overcome it, falling 4-3 to the visiting No. 11 Bemidji State Beavers (15-5-2, 9-1-0 CHA) at Dwyer Arena on Saturday night.

Down 4-2 late in the third period, senior Ryan Olidis (Uxbridge, Ont.) notched his 12th goal of the season, banging home a loose puck on the door step to bring the Purps within one. In the remaining six minutes, the Purple Eagles threw everything they could on net, but ultimately came up short.

"I liked our spirit and how we kept coming back tonight," head coach Dave Burkholder said. "Overall, there are a lot of parts of our game that I liked, but we just didn't put together a full sixty minute effort."

After spotting Bemidji a 2-0 lead in a span of 12 seconds late in the first, the Purple Eagles would respond shorthanded. Junior Bryan Haczyk (Nutley, N.J.) would spring junior Paul Zanette (Nobleton, Ont.) free, with the Ontario native winning the one-on-one battle with Beavers netminder Dan Bakala to come within one, heading into the first intermission.

Bemidji would take another two-goal lead just two minutes into the second period, when Matt Read beat sophomore netminder Chris Noonan (Portage, Mich.). Niagara would utilize its special teams once more to come within one late in the second period. Freshman Giancarlo Iuorio (Richmond Hill, Ont.) ripped a shot from the slot that was blocked, but the puck landed back on his stick, which he fired past Bakala.

Bemidji State took its third two-goal lead of the night early in the third period, when Brance Orban netted his second goal of the night, putting the Purps down 4-2.

Noonan finished with 27 saves, while senior blueliner Tyler Gotto (Calgary, Alb.) picked up two assists on the night. Haczyk's shorthanded assist extends his point streak to five games, notching six points in that span.

The Purple Eagles return to action on Friday, Jan. 22, when they finish up their non-conference schedule with a two-game series against ECAC foe Quinnipiac.