Alex Eisen/MDN Adam Wowryk sits alone on Minot State’s bench prior to the Beavers playing the University of Illinois in the first round of the ACHA Division I National Tournament in Frisco, Texas.

FRISCO, Texas — Adam Wowryk had the whole bench to himself in complete silence, as the music at the Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas, cut out 50 minutes prior to game time on Saturday.

Taking in the moment, Wowryk sat alone with his thought for 10 minutes or so.

“Anything and everything,” Wowryk said goes through his head. “Mostly the game, but sometimes my head wonders. I make sure it gets back (to the game) when it’s go time.”

Wowryk’s meditation sessions on the bench have been going on for roughly four years now. It’s something he started doing even before joining the Minot State men’s club hockey team.

“It started in juniors when I was at a rink and was pretty hot,” Wowryk explained. “So, I went on the bench and played well that game. I’ve been doing it every since.”

That’s how unique habits become pre-game rituals. Something works and players feel obligated to stick with it.

Everyone has different tendencies: blaring music, walking around the rink, taping up a stick or juggling a soccer ball. Anything to prepare for an all-out battle on the ice.

Sticking with these routines, the No. 6-seeded Minot State Beavers have returned to the ACHA Division I National Tournament semifinals for a third straight season.

While MSU doesn’t have the eye-catching No. 1 seed next to its name again (after previously having it for the last three seasons), these underdog Beavers remain confident in their abilities.

“We are ranked No. 6, but I think we are the best team in this tournament,” MSU goaltender Joshua Bykowski said. “I think all the guys agree with me that we are going to battle back from the sixth seed and end up being No. 1 at the end.”

So far, no obstacle has proved too difficult to overcome.

The first challenge was getting the legs moving early in the day with a pair of afternoon games on Friday (1:30 p.m.) and Saturday (2 p.m.). It was the earliest MSU has had to play a game all season.

Yet, the matinee affairs didn’t faze the Beavers. MSU embraced the time change instead.

“It wasn’t too bad actually,” senior defenseman Kyle Lipinski said. “I think the guys liked getting up earlier and going right for it. It’s better than laying around all day and focusing on it. (That way we can) just get it done with.”

Sunday’s contest against No. 3 Adrian College was also supposed to start at 1:30 p.m., but there was a lengthy delay in the first game of the day between No. 4 Ohio and No. 5 Iowa State due to glass panes on the boards getting shook loose.

The unconventional inconvenience didn’t make a difference for the Beavers. Lipinski scored twice, and Wowryk found the back of the net too in a 3-2 victory over Adrian College.

The next challenge? Filling in for starting goaltender Breydan Effertz.

The Minot native left Sunday’s quarterfinal game early in the second period with a pulled groin. He is likely done for the rest of the tournament.

Bykowski was the next man up. Thrown into the chaos, he stopped 10 out of 11 shots in a postseason game that he thought he was just going to watch from the bench.

“That’s a hard thing to do,” MSU head coach Wade Regier said. “In a national tournament game, down a goal and we needed him to make some big saves. And he sure did.”

Fighting through adversity, the Beavers find themselves two wins away from a second national title. And, as the defending champions Adrian College found out, it’s best not to overlook the determined No. 6 seed.

The Beavers are locked in and focused, awaiting their next challenger.

When asked if it mattered who Minot State would play next, Lipinski said: “Nope. You got to beat them all.”

Alex Eisen covers Minot State athletics, the Minot Minotauros and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @AEisen13.