SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts The American International College ice hockey team tried to dig out of an early hole and came close, but ultimately fell 6-3 to the RIT Tigers in an Atlantic Hockey Conference contest at the MassMutual Center on Friday, January 11.
FAST FACTS:
SCORE:RIT 6, AIC 3
RECORDS:AIC falls to 9-10-1 overall and 9-6-1 in the AHC; RIT improves to 9-8-2 overall and 7-6-2 in league play.
LOCATION:MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts
STATS:
AIC:
Shawn McBride: Two assists
Brennan Kapcheck: Two assists
Blake Christensen: One goal
Justin Cole: One goal
Martin Mellberg: One goal
Zackarias Skog: Loss (6-7-0), 21 saves on 26 shots in 58:01
RIT:
Erik Brown: Two goals, two assists
Gabe Valenzuela: Two goals
Abbott Girduckis: Two assists
Adam Brubacher: Two assists
Will Calverley: One goal
Shawn Cameron: One goal
Logan Drackett: Win (8-8-2), 30 saves
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- RIT jumped out to a 2-0 lead quickly thanks to a pair of penalties on AIC at 4:47, one for elbowing and one for too many man on the ice. The Tigers struck just 13 seconds into the two-man advantage as Gabe Valenzuela slapped in a one-timer at 5:00, and Brown scored 46 seconds later.
- AIC had few chances late in the first as Mark Logan committed a major checking from behind penalty, but could not solve RIT's Logan Drackett. That theme carried into the second, as he stymied a pair of power plays in the middle frame as well.
- In the third, RIT added another goal not a minute in; Valenzuela scored his second of the game at 0:52 to put AIC in a 3-0 hole.
- The Yellow Jackets could have folded, but they battled back, and it paid off as senior center Shawn McBride dished to junior left wing Blake Christensen in the slot, and the team's leading scorer used an RIT defender as a screen to break Drackett's shutout at 4:21 for his seventh of the year. Just over a minute later, sohpomore defenseman Brennan Kapcheck found McBride in the corner, and McBride threw the puck to the front of the net, where junior right wing Martin Mellberg tipped home his sixth of the year at 5:31.
- AIC then drew a penalty, but things turned sour quickly as the Yellow Jackets then took one, and off the ensuing faceoff, Will Calverley snapped home a one-timer to restore the two-goal lead at 7:04.
- Again AIC battled, and cut the deficit back to one as junior center Joel Kocur and Kapcheck connected, ultimately finding redshirt freshman Justin Cole in front for his second of the season at 8:40.
- Unfortunately, the rest of the game was nothing to skate home about, as Shawn Cameron scored at 14:37 to return RIT to a two-goal advantage once more, and Brown hit the empty net at 19:50 for the 6-3 final.
NEXT UP:
- The Yellow Jackets and Tigers close out their season series at the MassMutual Center at 1:05 p.m. on Saturday, January 12.
STAY CONNECTED:
- For more updates about the AIC ice hockey team, follow@AIC_HockeyonTwitterandInstagram, and likeAmerican International College Ice HockeyonFacebook. For updates on all AIC Yellow Jackets teams, follow@AICAthleticsonTwitterandInstagram, and likeAIC Yellow JacketsonFacebook.
