MASON CITY, Iowa – It’s been three months since North Iowa has been able to break through the crowd in the NA3HL’s West Division and score a Bauer Hockey West Division Star of the Week award.
The last player to do it at Thanksgiving is also the newest player to do it – Brendan Studioso was selected as the Bulls’ latest Star of the Week after leading North Iowa past St. Louis for a sweep this past weekend. The Bulls not only locked up their eighth straight Fraser Cup playoff spot, but they knocked the Jr. Blues out of first place in the Central Division race.
The Mukilteo, Washington native set up a pair of North Iowa goals in Friday night’s 6-3 win before finding the back of the net himself on Saturday in a 7-4 triumph. Naturally, he added a couple of assists to his unassisted goal in the first period.
Studioso appears poised to end his third season as a North Iowa Bull in style, with 11 points over his last six games, and at least a point in all six. He’s tallied 50 points this season, including 20 goals, and climbed into the top five in franchise history in goals, assists and total points.
It’s his third West Division Star of the Week honor this season, after landing the award in late November and late September. It’s the fifth time overall that a North Iowa player has earned Star of the Week honors this season, with Jarod Blackowiak and Peter Verstegen also picking up the weekly hardware earlier this season.
North Iowa returns to the ice on Friday and Saturday, looking to close out home-ice advantage in the first round of the Fraser Cup playoffs with a home-and-home set against the Rochester Grizzlies. Friday’s game gets started at 7:05 p.m. in Rochester, with a 7:30 p.m. start Saturday in Mason City. Live streaming coverage of both games is available on HockeyTV, with free audio streaming of Friday’s game on Mixlr.
Saturday’s game against the Grizzlies is Support Your School Night, featuring a laptop raffle and a chance to win recess with the Bulls. Admission for students is free, with $5 admission for college students. To purchase advance tickets for Saturday’s game or any future Bulls home game, click here.