It’s gut-check time this weekend for the Falcon club hockey team, which will look to do some bird hunting tonight versus Miami in the first round of their regional tournament. The team has qualified for regional tournaments and will face the RedHawks as part of the Southeast Regional Tournament in Wooster, Ohio, tonight at 7:15. The tournament is single-elimination, so a loss will end the Falcons’ season. Just one of 26 club sports offered, team president Wade LaFever, a junior at the University, said the team allows the chance to play competitive hockey while still focusing on academics. ‘We are just a team for players who want to attend a top quality University and still play hockey competitively,’ LaFever said. Toby Hafner, a senior forward in his first year with the Falcons, said that is the reason many are playing with the team. ‘The team is made up of guys who still love the game tremendously and still like the competitive edge it gives,’ Hafner said. BG won their league tournament two seasons ago and had qualified for regionals the season prior but due to their budget were unable to attend. The Falcons enter the tournament this year seeded tenth in their region. Alex Prough, a junior forward in his second year on the club team, said qualifying for the tournament is part of what makes the season worthwhile. ‘It is definitely rewarding,’ Prough said. ‘This year has been a lot of fun, so competing in regionals is icing on the cake.’ The Redhawks finished the season 13-8-1 and enter the tournament as the No. 3 seed. BG’s current record is 16-11, though the Falcons have won six of their last eight and are playing with much confidence. ‘We were competitive in all of our games this season,’ Prough said. ‘But Miami will certainly be our biggest test. If we can pull out a victory over them, a national championship becomes a realistic possibility.’ Miami finished their regular season 7-1-2 in their last 10 games. They went a combined 3-0-1 versus Michigan and Ohio State this season. BG is 1-3 overall against the same teams. The Redhawks averaged 5.59 goals per game while allowing just 2.68 per game. The Falcon offense is equally potent, averaging 6.04 goals per game, though they allowed on average 5.85 goals against per game.’ Hafner said the team will need to play well on both ends of the ice to win. ‘We are going to need a strong goaltending performance, production from the top scorers and hopefully get some contribution from other guys as well,’ Hafner said. ‘But we feel pretty good going into this game. We know what has to be done to win, so if we stick to that we should come out on top.’