Miami flirted with the loss column long enough, and Friday the RedHawks finally ended up there.
Despite rallying from a two-goal deficit, Miami lost to Bemidji State, 3-2 in the Subway Holiday Classic at Grand Forks, N.D., on Friday.
Bemidji State sophomore Darcy Findlay and senior Tyler Lehrke gave the Beavers a 2-0 lead, but Miami junior Carter Camper netted a pair of goals in a 3:57 span to tie the score.
Then Beavers Chris McKelvie put Bemidji State ahead for good with 3:29 left when he scored on a backhand shot.
McKelvie finished with a goal and an assist for Bemidji State (11-1-1), which has won four straight.
Freshman Curtis McKenzie recorded primary assists on both Miami goals, and freshman Joe Hartman and sophomore Cameron Schilling also dished for RedHawks helpers.
Sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard, unbeaten in 10 previous decisions for Miami (10-2-4), surrendered three goals on 15 shots in the loss.
Because of its exorbitant number of ties recently, Miami had an eight-game unbeaten streak snapped with this loss, yet the RedHawks have now won just one of their last five.
BOTTOM LINE: Miami hasn't played up to expectations since the Michigan series at the end of October, so a loss was an inevitability.
With just a 24-hour turnover until facing the second-best team in the country, Miami has little time to regroup.
Coach Enrico Blasi has to help fix the offense, and letting a guy with four assists in four seasons (Dane Hetland) start in favor of a player with 47 points in three-plus years (Gary Steffes) is not the answer. Moving sophomore Matt Tomassoni into a forward spot also isn't working.
Sophomore goaltender Connor Knapp will likely get the call against North Dakota on Saturday. He's been excellent in his last two starts, and hopefully that will carry over against the second-ranked team in the country.
Whatever Blasi does, the lack of offense needs to stop. Miami has scored nine goals in its last five games, and has been held to two or less goals in 8 of 15 games.
Regardless, tonight Miami has to win to retain its No. 1 ranking. A tie isn't good enough.
GRADES
FORWARDS: C-. Two goals and just 20 shots. This was the fourth time in the last five games Miami has been held to two goals or less.
DEFENSEMEN: B-. Remember early in the season when Miami defensemen actually contributed offensively? Two shots on goal, two secondary assists on Friday, but Bemidji State only had 15 shots.
This defensive corps has proven it can hold opponents to limited shots, but RedHawks blueliners have now scored just one goal in seven games.
GOALTENDING: D. It was bound to happen. Reichard had been so hot that he was due for a letdown, and he wasn't even that bad. He allowed three goals on 15 shots.
LINEUP CHANGES: Sophomore Trent Vogelhuber was back in the lineup, and senior Brandon Smith sat.
Repeating Saturday's trend, senior Gary Steffes sat again, and senior Dane Hetland for some reason dressed in his place.
Sophomore Matt Tomassoni again played forward, and had no points and no shots.
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