SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Top-seeded North Dakota dropped a 6-3 decision to No. 5 Omaha in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff Semifinal on Friday afternoon from the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.
 
Despite the loss, North Dakota (26-11-2) will advance to the NCAA Tournament for the 35th time in program history beginning next week. The Fighting Hawks will learn their seed, matchup and location as part of the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday evening at 5:30 p.m. (CT) on ESPNU and ESPN+.
 
Omaha's (23-11-4) Zach Urdahl struck for three goals and an assist while fellow forward Jesse Landell dished out a trio of helpers to help the Mavericks record their third straight win over NoDak and cement themselves in the national tournament.
 
Jackson Blake notched yet another multi-point game for the green and white, recording a pair of assists to eclipse the century mark in career points. He becomes the first sophomore at UND to reach the 100-point mark since Zach Parise in 2003-04, the 26th player in program history to reach the milestone in less than 100 games and the sixth-fastest in UND history at just 78 contests.
 
North Dakota got off to the start it wanted, striking just 78 seconds into the game when Jackson Kunz potted his eighth goal of the season on a loose puck in the crease to quickly put the green and white in front, 1-0. The Hawks nearly doubled the advantage while shorthanded, but Dylan James was stopped on a 2-on-1 chance late in the stanza.
 
Just a few seconds after the James chance and as the power play was winding down, Omaha knotted the game at 1-1 on Urdahl's first of the night to send the game into the first intermission tied.
 
Blake nearly gave UND the lead right out of the gate to start the second period, but his breakaway attempt hit the post after a great move to keep the game tied at 1-1. Omaha took advantage of a pair of chances, grabbing a 3-1 lead with a pair of goals in the middle stanza.
 
Hunter Johannes brought the Hawks within a goal in the dying seconds of the second period, finishing off a rebound from a Logan Britt shot to cut the deficit to 3-2 after 40 minutes.
 
The Mavericks restored the two-goal lead early in the third, with the puck squirting through goaltender Hobie Hedquist and in despite the whistle blowing prior to the puck entering the net just 1:18 into the third period.
 
NoDak answered back again to cut it one on Jake Livanavage's snipe on the power play with just over 10 minutes to play in regulation, but a pair of goals over the next five minutes by the Mavs sealed the 6-3 victory.
 
North Dakota will await its NCAA Tournament seeding and destination at the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. (CT).
 
Postgame Notes 

• Jackson Blake reached the 100-point mark for his career with a pair of assists
• He is the second UND sophomore to hit the century mark in the last 20 years, joining Zach Parise
• Blake now has 33 points over his last 17 games and 20 in his last 10
• UND falls to 1-4-0 at the Xcel Energy Center in the Frozen Faceoff since 2017-18
• The Hawks have also lost three straight Frozen Faceoff Semifinals
• Hobie Hedquist finished with 29 saves on 34 shots
• The freshman drops his first game of his career in six starts
• Jake Livanavage extended his point streak to five with his fifth goal of the season
• He moves into a tie for fourth for points by a rookie defenseman at UND with 29
• Jackson Kunz potted his eighth goal of the season to give him 12 points in his last 14 games
• Hunter Johannes has goals in back-to-back games to give him 11 on the season
• UND finished with a 39-35 shot advantage
• The Hawks blocked only eight shots while Omaha had 13
• Omaha held a 35-27 faceoff advantage, with Cameron Berg going 11-10 to pace UND

  
How It Happened 

First Period                                                     
01:18 | UND – Jackson Kunz slams home a loose puck in the crease to give UND a 1-0 lead
18:30 | UNO – Zach Urdahl ties the game with a power play goal late in the first

Second Period 
06:17 | UNO – Matt Miller gives UNO a 2-1 advantage with a goal off a faceoff play
17:06 | UNO – Jimmy Glynn fires a shot through traffic to beat the goaltender and make it 3-1
19:36 | UND – Hunter Johannes cuts the deficit to 3-2 with a rebound goal

Third Period 
01:18 | UNO – Brock Bremer sneaks one through Hedquist to restore the two-goal advantage
09:50 | UND – Jake Livanavage snipes home a power play goal midway through the third to make it 4-3
10:58 | UNO – Urdahl gets his second of the game just a minute later to go back up by two, 5-3
15:16 | UNO – Urdahl completes the hat trick with an empty net tally

For more information on North Dakota hockey, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDmhockey.