Western Michigan had won the last three of four games against North Dakota prior to this matchup.
UND struck first, just four Minutes and 54 seconds into the game. Western Michigan answered back with a goal from sophomore forward Dawson Dipietro to tie the game at one. North Dakota scored two more goals within a minute and a half of each other, making it 3-1. UND scored their first two goals of the game on the power play.
WMU kept themselves in the game, scoring the final goal of the first period. This made it 3-2 going into the locker room.