Sophomore forward Drew Miller said he was so frustrated after Friday's loss at Bowling Green, he spoke to his brother, former MSU goaltender and Hobey Baker Award winner Ryan Miller.

"I felt like I was out there working hard but nothing was getting accomplished," Drew Miller said about Friday's game. "I think I was just trying too hard."

In hope of salvaging a weekend split with the Falcons and staying in the hunt for home playoff ice, a refocused Miller posted four points in Saturday's 6-3 win, including the game-winner 5:17 into the third period. Miller also earned first-star honors on the night.

The Spartans (15-15-4 overall, 10-13-3 CCHA) found themselves down 3-2 late in the second period Saturday, when Miller scored his first of two goals on the night to tie the game, heading into the final period of play.

"One of the things I tried to work on was to not think about what's going on, just read and react and play the game of hockey," Miller said.

"I care so much about the team and wanted us to do so well. It's a tough situation when we're not winning all the time, and guys just try to give their all and sometimes they try to give too much instead of just playing."

The Spartans played tentatively at the start of the third period, which MSU head coach Rick Comley called the most important period of the year, before Miller found a rebound in front of the net nearly five minutes in. He shoveled it past Falcons goaltender Jordan Sigalet to give the Spartans a lead they didn't give up.

"We just had to come out in the third and get some shots, get it down low and work hard in the corners," junior forward Colton Fretter said. "We had a lot of success drawing penalties. We just wanted to work hard down low and get some shots."

Sophomore goaltender Dominic Vicari was able to weather the Falcons' storm after the go-ahead goal, making big save after big save, and the Spartans were put on a five-minute power play late in the game when Miller was cheap-shotted from behind. With the man advantage, MSU scored two goals to shut down any type of a comeback for Bowling Green (16-12-4, 13-10-3).

After only mustering one goal on 34 shots Friday, the Spartans solved Sigalet on Saturday and were able to score five goals on 36 shots. Vicari was equally effective at the other end of the ice.

Fretter, senior captain Jim Slater and freshman forward Jim McKenzie all posted multiple-point performances in Saturday's win, as well.

The Spartans went 5-for-11 on the power play, scoring all goals but one with the man advantage, but at the same time they were unable to kill a penalty.

With the weekend split, MSU is still on the hunt for home ice in the first-round CCHA playoffs. The Spartans are in eighth place and only two points out of sixth, but will be without junior forward David Booth for at least another two weeks because of a cracked rib.

"We're still in the race for home ice," Slater said. "We've got to come back with the same intensity."

The Spartans will close their CCHA regular season play Friday and Saturday when they meet last-place Notre Dame in a home-and-home series.

*Clinched playoff ice

Source: CCHA