A quick look up and down Bemidji State’s roster would reveal a lot of familiar names: Ethan Somoza. Owen Sillinger. Alex Ierullo. Tyler Kirkup.
All have been contributing to the BSU program consistently since their freshmen seasons, and their presence in the lineup this year — a few back for an extra year of eligibility — are a big reason why the Beavers (6-4-0) were picked to once again compete for a league title this season.
So far, all four of those seniors have found themselves leading by example. Sillinger leads the team with 12 points while Ierullo is close behind with 11. Kirkup is the Beavers’ leading goal scorer so far with six. And Somoza has two goals and three assists to remain in the top five of the Beavers’ scoring list through 10 games.
But it’s not just about those experienced players for Bemidji State. The Beavers are also getting contributions from players down the lineup — be they newcomers or just players who haven’t had a whole lot of playing time for whatever reason.
“You take a look at the top end of our scoring, it is our experience that’s scoring the majority of our goals,” BSU head coach Tom Serratore said. “But on Saturday we got three goals from freshmen, and that’s a huge bonus when that happens.”
Take, for example, Jere Väisänen. The freshmen from Finland had played in all nine of Bemidji State’s games until Saturday but hadn’t found his way onto the scoresheet until their game against Lake Superior State. Väisänen popped his first collegiate goal midway through the second period then scored what turned out to be the game-winner early in the third. The game ended up a 4-2 win as the Beavers completed the road sweep.
Jakub Lewandowski, a forward from Poland, also netted a goal on Saturday to add to his point total (2 goals and 2 assists).
Serratore said that although the top-end of the Beaver lineup is currently heavy on experienced players — seniors and juniors — he has room for younger players to impress.
“There’s no exact science to this stuff,” he said. “You’re playing guys, you’re playing four lines, and when they get their opportunity, make the most of it. That’s what Jere Väisänen did. He was opportunistic, they created chances for themselves with some hard work, and he finished. It’s nice to see that. It builds confidence and hopefully that makes them better players and makes our team better.”
Aside from Väisänen and Lewandowski, another freshman who has played a lot is defender Tony Follmer, who hasn’t scored but is playing alongside senior Tyler Jubenvill most nights on the blue line. And sophomore Austin Jouppi, who didn’t play at all as a freshmen, has been in and out of the lineup and getting some playing time this year. He scored his first collegiate goal Oct. 23 against Northern Michigan.
“Any time you can get young guys to contribute, it’s huge,” junior defenseman Kyle Looft said. “Our leadership group and coaching staff has done a great job preparing them, and they’ve come and worked. You saw it this weekend, it all comes together.”
With the sweep against Lake State, Bemidji State went above the .500 mark for the first time this season. They’ve played a tough schedule already, but Serratore is encouraged by their play on the road so far. The Beavers are 5-1-0 away from the Sanford Center, with sweeps against both Lake Superior State and Northern Michigan and a big overtime victory at North Dakota to their name.
“When you can win on the road like that, it’s so important,” Serratore said. “If you can do that, it’s like you’re banking wins. We’ve been very fortunate so far that things have gone our way so far on the road.”
The Beavers must now turn their attention back home. They take on Michigan Tech in a crucial early-season CCHA series in Bemidji. The Huskies and the Beavers have been developing a budding rivalry in the past few seasons, in part due to how frequently they’ve met — they played six times last season, including in the WCHA playoffs.
“When you look at their team, they’re deep. They’re deep in every position, up front, on the backline, they’re getting great goaltending, special teams,” Serratore said. “They’ve got great offensive players and they might be the fastest team in our league. It’s always challenging playing Michigan Tech so they’re going to be great games.”
