MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – The Morrisville State Men’s Ice Hockey team picked up their first win of the 2017-2018 season on Saturday evening, defeating the Red Dragons of Cortland State on the road 4-3.
The Mustangs came out firing on all cylinders on Friday night, scoring twice in the opening period. Ryan Bochert (Denver, Colo.) started it out for the visitors when he and Nick DeVito (Averill Park, N.Y.) broke free for a 2v1 breakaway before Bochert found the back of the net. Layne Martin (Findlay, Ohio) was credited with the second assist.
Less than five minutes later, Morrisville found themselves down a skater due to a Mustangs’ penalty. However, that did not prove to be a problem thanks to Jon Kasper (Pittsburgh, Pa.) who broke away from the pack for a short-handed breakaway goal, giving Morrisville the 2-0 advantage.
Up 2-0, the first four minutes and eight seconds of the second period proved to be problematic for the Mustangs as Cortland rattled off three goals in that span. Douglas Elgstam and Connor Beck each scored power play goals for the Red Dragons, while Andrew McCann added an even handed goal. Fortunately, for Morrisville they were able to re-group to keep the score at 3-2 for the remainder of the second period.
Outshooting the Red Dragons 13-8 in the third period, Morrisville was finally able to capitalize at the 12 minute mark with a power play goal of their own. The Mustangs worked the puck around the outside, looking for an opening. Bradley Hefner (Billings, Mont.) found that opening, swinging a pass from the center to the waiting stick of CJ Stubbs (Pleasant Grove, Vt.) on the left wing. Stubbs ripped a one timer to knot the score up at 3-3. Also picking up an assist on the goal was Stevie Ray Adams (Akwesasne, Que.).
Forty four seconds later, the Mustangs pulled ahead on another power play goal. Ian Wood (Pittsburgh, Pa.) was relentless around the net, putting away the puck on a scrum at the crease for the 4-3 lead. Nick Hautanen (Timmins, Ont.) and Martin picked up the assists.
Morrisville continued to look for openings to give themselves a cushion, but each shot attempt came up denied by Drew Weigman, the Red Dragons’ net-minder. With just over a minute remaining in regulation, Cortland pulled Weigman in favor of the extra skater, but the push was not enough as the Mustangs held on for the 3-2 victory.
Jared Young (Pueblo West, Colo.) picked up the win in goal for Morrisville, tallying 35 saves.
The Mustangs will look to keep things rolling in Cortland on Saturday evening as they complete their conference series with the Red Dragons at 7 PM.
Morrisville State College’s curricula are enriched with applied learning and pave the way for opportunity at both the Morrisville and Norwich campuses. An action-oriented, interactive learning lab, the college is a national leader in technology and has been lauded for its exemplary, innovative and effective community service programs.
The college was ranked among the Best Regional Colleges in the North by U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges 2018 issue and was also recognized in the Top Public Schools, Regional Colleges North in the 2018 Best Colleges rankings. For more information about Morrisville State College, visit www.morrisville.edu.
