It was bound to happen at some point.  

For the first time this season, in a disappointing series opener Friday night in northern Minnesota, Colorado College lost a game in which it led after 40 minutes of play.

Bemidji State University struck for three third-period goals to knock off the 10th-ranked Tigers, 4-2, at Sanford Center and prevent them from climbing into a tie for second place in the WCHA standings.

Injury-riddled CC, now 15-10-2 overall and 12-8-1 in league play, will shoot for a series split and its first victory ever in Bemidji when the teams meet in a rematch on Saturday.

Second-period tallies by junior Rylan Schwartz on the power play and senior Tim Hall while shorthanded staked the visitors to their 2-1 advantage heading into the final 20 minutes.

But junior forward Brance Orban, who iced the triumph with an empty-netter with 30 seconds  remaining, pulled the Beavers even less than two minutes into the third frame, and freshman Tyler Tosunian notched the game winner with the first goal of his collegiate career at 10:11.

BSU, which improved to 14-12-3 overall and 8-10-3 in the WCHA, got a 29-save performance from senior netminder Dan Bakala. Junior Joe Howe made 23 stops at the other end for Colorado College.

The Tigers dominated play in the opening period, outshooting Bemidji State by a 15-8 margin, but went to the locker room trailing 1-0 thanks to a defensive miscue inside their own blue line.  
After forcing a turnover on the forecheck, BSU's Aaron McLeod soloed in to score unasisted at the 16:27 mark.

Beavers forward Brady Wacker took his second penalty of the opening period with 57 seconds remaining, and CC cashed in shortly after the intermission when Schwartz beat Bakala from a tough angle early in the middle period, a second before Wacker was scheduled to exit the sin bin. Sophomore left wing Jaden Schwartz and senior defenseman Gabe Guentzel assisted on the red lighter.  

It was the older Schwartz's 19th goal of the season and first since Jan. 14.

Guentzel was serving Colorado College's only penalty of the game when freshman defenseman Aaron Harstad picked off an attempted clearing pass by Bakala and fed Hall, who ripped home a shot just under the cross bar to put the Tigers ahead, 2-1, at 13:26.

Box score