With invitations to the American Collegiate Hockey Association National Tournament going out Wednesday, the No. 7 ISU hockey team got two important wins Friday and Saturday.

ISU coach Al Murdoch said he thinks the wins against No. 14 Central Oklahoma solidified their spot in the tournament. Last season, the Cyclones missed out on the national tournament for the first time in team history.

The Cyclones went into the weekend following a rough two-game series in St. Louis against Lindenwood. ISU goaltenders Paul Karus and Mike Ness gave up 14 goals over the course of both games. Friday night against the Bronchos, Karus stopped all 21 shots in a 4-0 victory. On Saturday night, Karus stopped 31 out of 33 Broncho shots in a 5-2 win.

“We’ve been spending 15 to 20 minutes at the start of practice just shooting, so the goaltenders are having to stand in the net and see a lot of rubber in the first 15 to 20 minutes,” Murdoch said. “After that it’s just regular stuff.”

ISU forward Mike Falvey had a goal in each game against Central Oklahoma. Falvey, who said he’s been having a bit of a dry spell, was happy to snap out of his funk.

“I’ve been on a drought for a while,” Falvey said. “Our line, [Ryan Reid] and [David Elliston], both played really well and we had a good work ethic, so it really paid off in the end, which is nice.”

Prior to last weekend, Falvey had not scored since Oct. 8 in a game against the Dells Ducks. Falvey is currently 10th on the team in goals with seven. He’s 17th on the team in total points with 10.

“He’s playing the best hockey of the season right now,” Murdoch said. “I like what I’m seeing.”

The Cyclones also got good play out of their second leading scorer, Jon Feavel, this weekend. Feavel had four assists in two games, three of which were on Saturday night.

The ISU hockey club will be traveling to Ohio this weekend for the Central States Collegiate Hockey League Tournament, where it will play Illinois in the first round Friday afternoon. The CSCHL Tournament results do not impact selection for the ACHA National Tournament.

The Cyclones are feeling good about their chances at being invited to the national tournament, and Feavel said they are not treating the CSCHL Tournament like it’s the end of the world.

“When you’re going to nationals, you want to make sure you’re focusing on that and the preparations there,” Feavel said.