ST. CLOUD, Minn. (Herb Brooks National Hockey Center) -- St. Cloud State goaltender Jeff Smith turned aside all 32 shots he faced to backstop the No. 2 Huskies to a 2-0 shutout over Bemidji State University and their 10th victory of the season, Friday at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.

Despite out shooting the Huskies 32-21 in the game, the Beavers were unable to solve Smith and find the back of the net. It marked the second straight loss for the Beavers and the second consecutive game BSU failed to light their half of the scoreboard.

The Beavers supplied the Huskies with a pair of power-play chances early and after playing nearly three straight minutes on the man advantage, St. Cloud State broke through. The eventual game-winning goal would come off the stick of Easton Brodzinski at the 11:46 mark of the first period with help from Ryan Poehling and Blake Lizotte.

The Beavers would finished the frame with a 12-7 edge in shots on goal, but would head to the locker room down 1-0.

BSU continued to apply offensive pressure in the second period. Aided by a pair of power-play chances, the Beavers would finish the scoreless frame with an 11-6 edge in shots to hold a 23-13 advantage after 40 minutes of play.

Trailing 1-0 with under two minutes to play, the Beavers and Head Coach Tom Serratore pulled goaltender Henry Johnson to bring in an extra skater, apply more pressure and attempt to even the score. The tactic would prove to be unsuccessful. SCSU would get an empty-net goal from Kevin Fitzgerald at the 18:49 mark to put the game out of reach.

The first-period power-play goal by the Huskies would clinch the special teams battle for SCSU. The team finished going 1-for-3 on the man advantage while the SCSU penalty-kill unit kept the Beavers off the scoreboard in all three of their opportunities.

Johnson finished the game with 19 saves and was responsible for allowing one SCSU goal. He moved to 3-2-0 on the season.

The Beavers (5-3-1) look to snap its current two-game losing skid and split the non-conference series tomorrow when the same two teams hit the ice. Opening face off is set for 6:07 p.m. back at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.

For more information on the Bemidji State athletics programs, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeavers), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) or sign up for the TXTUpdates from BSUBeavers.com text-messaging system through the "Multimedia" pull down menu on the main page of BSUBeavers.com.

Nestled in Northern Minnesota’s wooded region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men’s and women’s hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

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