History Has Been made. Oswego Stae Women Win First Ever Playoff Game

History has been made this past Saturday when the Oswego Sate Women's Hockey Team not only hosted their first ever playoff game but won their first ever playoff game witha 3-0 victory over Neumann. Last year if you remember, Neumann knocked Oswego State out of the ECAC West Tournment in a double-overtime 2-1 win. The following recap of last saturday's win is provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department.

The Oswego State women's ice hockey team (11-13-2) posted the program's first-ever playoff win against Neumann University (9-13-2) in a 3-0 shutout at the Campus Center Arena Saturday afternoon. Bridget Smith played phenomenally, stopping 18 shots, while Mackenzie Lee had a hand in all three Laker goals with assists.

The first period was fairly uneventful, as the teams traded the puck back and forth. However, it was not until 0.6 seconds remained on the clock that Kelly Collins put the Lakers ahead 1-0 on a power-play goal. She scored on a rebound after initial shots by Carly Henderson and Lee.

Melissa Seamont extended the Laker lead just 4:44 in the second with the team's second power-play goal. The goal was assisted by Carly Marchment and Lee. Two minutes later, Seamont found Lee behind the net and she passed it out to Megan Howe, who scored the Lakers' third and final goal of the afternoon, at the near faceoff circle.

The power-play and penalty-kill units were Oswego State's strengths in the contest, as it fought off all four of Neumann's power-play opportunities.

Late in the third with 1:13 remaining, Neumann pulled its goalie, Shannon Donnelly, from the net. She went back in with 54.6 seconds remaining. The Knights took a late timeout and Donnelly came out again with 45 seconds to go. However, Oswego State was able to preserve the shutout. Donnelly saved a total of 31 shots on goal.

There were many bright spots from the victory last weekend. First off, Mackenzie Lee getting an assist on all three goals shows that she isn't just a scoring machine, it shows she an all around playmaker. Second, the fact that Kelly Collins scored the game winner with .6 seconds left on the clock really shook Neuman. The Knights and Lakers played a back and forth game and the Lakers grabbed momentum with that goal and didn't let up from there. The biggest thing that stood out was the way both teams played. All three times these two clubs met was at the Campus Center in Oswego, and the Lakers won all three games, teh two in the regular season adn the biggest one in the playoffs. This was a HUGE step forward for this Oswego State Program who has started to really become a force in ECAC West play the last two seasons. And the ride for this season isn't over just yet.

The Lakers will face Plattsburgh in the ECAC West Semifinal round on Saturday, March 3 in Rochester, N.Y. at Ritter Arena. Puck drop is slated for 5PM, which makes things really interesting in that the Oswego State Men host Plattsburgh back in Oswego at 7. So its a full day of Oswego Plattsburgh hockey!

Oswego Blasts Fredonia....Will Host Plattsburgh in SUNYAC Title Game

The Oswego State Men's hockey team exacted revenge against the Fredonia Blue Devils. Last year Fredonia upset Oswego in this same round of the SUNYAC playoffs with a 2-1 OT victory. This time it was a different story as Oswego skated away with an 8-3 whipping of the Blue Devils. The game recap to follow was provided by the Oswego State Athletics Department.

The top-ranked Oswego State men's ice hockey team made sure that last year's State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) semifinal loss did not repeat itself, as the Lakers scored six straight goals in the first and second periods en route to an 8-3 win over Fredonia (12-11-3) on Saturday. Oswego State (22-2-2) will host Plattsburgh on Saturday, March 3 at 7 p.m. for the conference title.

Ian Boots (Sr., Akwesasne, N.Y.) and Paul Rodrigues recorded two goals apiece, while junior defenseman Zack Josepher scored a goal and added two assists. Andrew Hare finished the game with 17 saves.

The Blue Devils' Bryan Ross put the visitors ahead early when he created a breakaway opportunity following a turnover at the Laker blue line. He was tripped on his way to the goal, and was awarded a penalty shot that got past Hare at 7:09 in the first period.

Late in the frame Fredonia was whistled for a tripping penalty at 16:43, and Oswego State made it pay. Jon Whitelaw blasted a one-timer along the ice from the far faceoff circle into the back of the net after pinpoint passing from Chris Ayotte and Zack Josepher to even the score.

On the next shift, the Lakers took a 2-1 lead after Ayotte found Josepher, who lit the lamp at 18:13. It was nearly a 3-1 game heading into intermission, but Blue Devil goalie Mark Friesen made a sliding save across the goal line to deny Rodrigues.

However, just over a minute into the second period, Rodrigues got his revenge when his slap shot from the left faceoff circle found its way into the back of the net after a series of passes from Josepher and Whitelaw, while the Lakers were on the power play.

The score became 4-1 when Jesse McConney hit Chris Brown, who was streaking up the right side of the rink in transition. Brown skated in on Friesen, shooting the puck low stick-side at 3:15, prompting Fredonia to call timeout to slow down Oswego State's momentum.

At 5:06 in the second period, Oswego State gained a two-skater advantage for nearly two minutes after boarding and roughing penalties were called against the Blue Devils. The Lakers capitalized on the opportunity 41 seconds later when Ian Boots unleashed a whicked shot from the top of the left faceoff circle for his ninth goal of the season. McConney earned his second assist of the game on the play.

Rodrigues netted his second goal of the game at 15:01 when he carried the puck up the near side and behind the net, sliding a backhand into the net before Friesen could seal the gap along the far post. Luke Moodie earned his 18th assist of the season, as Oswego State went ahead 6-1.

A Laker slashing penalty at the end of the frame gave Fredonia its second power play of the game, which it used to score its second goal at 19:17 when Brett Mueller lifted his shot into the upper left-hand corner of the goal to make the score 6-2 heading into the final 20 minutes.

The Blue Devils scored their second power-play goal of the game at 13:03 in the third period following an Oswego State slashing penalty when Stephen Castriota posted his tenth marker of the season. However, the Lakers stopped the scoring string two minutes later when puck movement from Chris Muise and Tyler Leimbrock pulled Friesen out of position. Leimbrock fed Boots for the easy tap-in goal to put Oswego State back on top by four goals at 7-3.

Hank Van Boxmeer got in on the scoring at 16:48 after being on the receiving end of passes from Muise and Leimbrock for the Lakers' fourth power-play goal of the contest. Following the score, Fredonia brought in goalie Jeff Holloway as Friesen came out of the game with 42 saves.

Both squads excelled with extra attackers, as Oswego State went 4-for-7 and Fredonia went 2-for-5.

Here are the video highlights from the game provided by WNYO's Mike Keeley:


Oswego still had the memory of last season's game as they dominated for the most part in this contest. The games started sluggish for the Lakers, as Brian Ross got the penalty shot goal. Nobody has scored on a penalty shot in the campus center since Ryan Ellis scored on Kevin Ambroski of Fredonia during the 06-07 regular season. After the goal the Lakers finally woke up and played the type of hockey Oswego State fans have come to expect over the apst few seasons.

As far as the opponet is concerend, it took 3 overtimes to decide who was going to play Oswego at the Campus Center next weekend. Plattsburgh State and Buffalo State were tied at three after 60 minutes of regulation and a game that took a total time of 4 hours 10 minutes but at the 11:07 mark of the 3rd Overtime Mark Constantine got the Cardnials in the SUNYAC title game.

With that win by the Cardnials, it sets up another Oswego-Plattsburgh meeting for the SUNYAC title. It's the 3rd time in the past four seasons they played each other. Plattsburgh took the 1st one at stafford in Overtime, and Oswego took the 2nd meeting at the campus center in 2010. So this is the rubber match and an automatic ticket punch to the NCAA tournment.

Oswego Women Drop Final Two Against Elmira. Now Gear Up for Playoffs

The regular season has come to an end this past weekend for the Oswego State Lakers Women's Hockey team, and it came against a very tough Elmira Soaring Eagles. It was a tough weekend for the Lakers, as the dropped both games to Elmira by the same score of 4-3. First up is a recap of Froiday's action, as provided by the Oswego State Athletic Department.

The Oswego State women's ice hockey team (10-12-2, 8-7-2 ECAC West) nearly pulled off an upset, but came up just short in a 4-3 loss to seventh-ranked Elmira College (19-4-1, 14-3-0) Saturday night. The two teams traded the lead with goals on each side throughout the entire 60 minutes of play.

The first period started off with a couple of penalties before Kelly Collins scored the first goal of the game, her ninth of the season at 14:15 with the assist going to Jillian Bergeron.

Senior Kathryn Sbrocchi capitalized on a power play opportunity at 3:32 in the second to put the Lakers ahead 2-0, assisted by Carly Marchment and Melissa Seamont. Seamont has really picked up her offensive play this season.

Under a minute later at 4:16, Elmira's Lindsay Mitchell put the Soaring Eagles on the board with her eleventh goal of the season. Elmira struck on the ensuing shift to tie the game at 2-2 with a goal by Ashley Ryan. However, Carly Henderson put Oswego State back on top at 11:58 in the period for her eighth goal of the season with assists going to Marchment and Chelsey Draker as the Lakers went into the locker room with a 3-2 lead.


A penalty on Oswego State early in the third led to the game being tied for a second time, as Elmira's Erin Weston scored a power-play goal at 2:44. The game-winner came a few minutes later at 5:49 in the period from Lauren Campbell, as she was assisted by Erin Weston and Katie Gaskin.

The Lakers pulled goalie Bridget Smith, who made 33 saves, for the final 1:13, but were unable to force the game into overtime as the Soaring Eagles escaped with the win. Lisa Marshall finished the game with 24 saves for the victors.

So that was the excitment from Saturday's action. Now on to Sunday, and the result was the same as the day before, a 4-3 Elmira Victory. The following recap was provided by the Oswego State Athletic Department.

The Oswego State women's ice hockey team came up just short in similar goal-trading style of Saturday night's game, as the Lakers fell 4-3 to seventh-ranked Elmira Sunday afternoon.

First period excitement began right away with a goal by Elmira's Kathryn Walker just 24 seconds into the game with assists awarded to Alex McPhail and Lauren Campbell. Sophomore Jocelyn St. Clair tied the game with a power-play goal at 8:34 in the period with her fifth goal of the season, as Megan Howe earned a helper, which she has become noted for in her two years withi the club.

Elmira came back to take the lead at 16:06 in the first when McPhail scored her second goal of the season. Scoring was not done in the period, though, as nearly three minutes later, the Lakers capitalized on their second power play. Carly Henderson tied up the game for the second time thanks to a beautiful set up from St. Clair and Leah McNaughton to send both teams into intermission even at 2-2.

Melissa Seamont gave the Lakers the lead for the first time in the game at 8:10 in the second period, as Howe recorded her second assist. Oswego State held on to the advantage for most of the period until Tori Charron tied the score at 16:59 for her 18th goal of the season.

However, the game-winning goal came with one second remaining on the clock in the second period from Lauren Campbell's stick.

Oswego State took a timeout four seconds into the third period and goalie Catherine Cote was pulled for the final 52 seconds, but it was unable to capitalize with the extra attacker. Cote stopped a total of 26 shots in the losing effort, while Elmira's Lauren Sullivan registered 22 stops.

There were some major positives to come out of this regular season. The biggest being there are new leading scorers in program history, in the form of Kelly Collins and Jillian Bergeron, both have 49 career points. Collins also now has the program records for career goals with 35. Melissa Seamont upped her offensive totals from last year, as did Carley Henderson with her goal totals, both of whom will be major impact players this weekend in the playoffs.

This weekend is a first for the team, as they will host a playoff game this saturday at 1PM against Neuman College. This is a big weekend for the team for two reasons: 1) it will be the first time ever that they host an ECAC West playoff game at the Campus Center and 2) its a shot at redemption against Neuman. If you remember Neumann was the club that knocked Oswego out of the playoffs in double overtime last year at Neumann. So Oswego willbe looking for major payback. Plus Oswego won both meetings between these two clubs earlier this year in Oswego by 3-1 and 4-1 scores. So the Lakers looking to make it a perfect 3 for 3 against Neumann.

Oswego a Success in Sweep of Whiteout Weekend

Whiteout weekend has come and gone for Oswego State and it was a complete success as Oswego was able to sweep both Plattsburgh and Potsdam, and it all started with a 3-0 victory over Plattsburgh on whiteout night. The following recap is provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department.

Another chapter was added to one of the most storied rivalries in college hockey as Andrew Hare registered 27 saves to give the No. 1-ranked Oswego State men's ice hockey team a 3-0 win over fourth-ranked Plattsburgh Friday night in front of a sellout crowd. It was Hare's second shutout of the season that locked the top seed in the conference playoffs for the Lakers, who are unbeaten in seven straight games against the Cardinals.

The result marked the first time since February 13, 1998 that Oswego State posted a shutout win versus Plattsburgh.

After a Plattsburgh interference penalty created a 4-on-4 situation, Tyler Leimbrock got the ensuing faceoff back to Jesse McConney at the blue line. McConney snapped a shot through traffic past Cardinal goalie Mathieu Cadiuex for his sixth goal of the season to get the home team on the scoreboard at 6:06 in the first.

With five minutes left on the scoreboard in the period, Plattsburgh nearly leveled the contest while on the power play, but Laker goaltender Andrew Hare made two consecutive saves to keep the Cardinals from lighting the lamp. Minutes later, Jon Whitelaw doubled the margin to two goals when he was the beneficiary of a series of passes from Luke Moodie and Paul Rodrigues during a 3-on-2 rush.

Plattsburgh gained momentum at the end of the second period, though, when it gained a two-minute, two-skater advantage for the final 42.6 seconds of the frame, spilling over into the third period trailing by two goals. However, the Laker penalty-kill unit and Hare were up to the challenge keeping the shutout bid alive.

Oswego State took a three-goal lead at 7:05 in the third when a Zack Josepher blast from the center of the blue line was deflected by a Plattsburgh defenseman right onto the tape of Chris Ayotte's stick. Ayotte one-timed his shot top-shelf on Cadieux's glove side with 23 seconds remaining on a Cardinal tripping penalty. Whitelaw was credited with the second assist. Plattsburgh tried to make a final charge, but was unable to get any shots past Hare.

Special teams were also a big component of the Laker win, as the power-play unit went 1-for-4, while fending off seven Cardinal power plays.

Andrew Hare moved to 17-2-2 on the year, while Cadieux finished with 25 saves in the losing effort.

for the 3rd straight year Oswego beats Plattsburgh on home ice. last time these two clubs met on senior weekend was the 2009 season when Plattsburgh won it 2-1, so it has been sweet revenge for the Lakers the past few seasons.

Here are the video highlights from Whiteout thanks to WNYO's Mike Keeley:


So that was whiteout night, but there was one more game this weekend and it was senior night on Saturday night against potsdam. Another night another Lakers win, this time by the same score as the night before 3-0. Here once again is the game recap as provided by the Oswego State Sports Information Department.

The top-ranked Oswego State men's ice hockey team posted its second consecutive shutout to close out the regular season with a 3-0 win against Potsdam Saturday at the Campus Center Arena. Andrew Hare registered 19 saves for his second shutout in as many games to send over five seniors in style on White-Out Weekend.

After a quick first period with few whistles, Oswego State stepped it up a notch coming out of the locker room by controlling play in the second period, outshooting Potsdam by a margin of 20-4. Tyler Leimbrock woke up the quiet Oswego crowd when his rebound from the bottom of the near-side faceoff circle went over Potsdam goalie Kevin McFarland's left shoulder under the crossbar at 9:03 while the Lakers were on the power play. Ian Boots and Chris Muise received assists on Leimbrock's 12th marker of the year.

It became a 2-0 contest at 13:23 in the second when Jon Whitelaw wristed a pass that came through the slot on a 2-on-1 chance from Tim Carr just under the crossbar for Whitelaw's 17th goal of the season.

Oswego State appeared to have established a three-goal lead at 12:36 when the puck slid under a sprawling McFarland near the far post, but it was waved off for not crossing the goal line. Potsdam stayed in the game, though, when the Lakers were called for a five-minute major with 2:44 remaining in regulation. The Bears were unable to take advantage of the extra skater, while Matt Singleton tacked on a short-handed, empty-net goal at 19:38 to seal the win.

The Lakers went 1-for-2 on the power play compared to Potsdam going 0-for-3. McFarland played well between the pipes tallying 44 saves in the loss.

Here are the video highlights from senior night thanks to WNYO's Mike Keeley:


This was not only the final regular season game for Oswego, it was also senior night, a good way to say goodbye to the five seniors on this years club, Goalie Paul Beckwith, Defensemen Hank Van Boxmeer and Jared Anderson, and Forwards Ian Boots and Andrew Mather. These five guys have given their hears and souls to this program over the past four seasons, last two for Boots who transfered from Ohio State. It has ben a real joy to watch these guys play hockey the past four seasons, and I can honestly say its been fun getting to watch these guys work, and a real pleasure getting to know the guys off the ice as well. I can probably say this for most fans when I say this.......Seniors THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES!

Oswego State hosts a SUNYAC semifinal game on Saturday, February 25 at 7 p.m. against the lowest-remaining seed after Wednesday night's two conference play-in contests. Tickets are $8 for adults and $3 for SUNY Oswego students with a valid ID. Additional ticket information will be released on Sunday, February 19.

2012 Whiteout #4 Plattsburgh State vs. #1 Oswego State

The night has finally arrived. The night Laker hockey fans have been waiting for has finally arrived. Whiteout night is finally here. Both teams come into this contest on hot streaks of sorts. Oswego walks in with a 19-2-2 record overall and a 12-0-2 record in SUNYAC play which is good enough to be the Number 1 team in all of Division III Men’s Hockey. Plattsburgh meanwhile comes in with a 16-3-4 record overall and a 11-2-1 record in SUNYAC play, good enough for #4 in the Country in Division III Hockey.

Oswego has gone unbeaten in the last 6 meetings against the Cardnials going 5-0-1 in that stretch including playoffs. The last win for Plattsburgh against the Lakers came on March 7th 2009 in the SUNYAC Championships a game the Cardnials won 5-4 in Overtime. These two clubs met earlier this season at Stafford Ice Arena in Plattsburgh, a great great hockey game that ended in a 2-2 tie.

Now for those of you who are unfamiliar with the tradition of the whiteout game here is basically what happens. The whole thing started back in 2007 when the Campus Center Ice Arena opened. In the old building, Romney Fieldhouse, whenever Oswego would score, the crowd would throw bagels on the ice, in response to the crowd at Stafford throwing tennis balls, why that is I will never fully understand. Anyway, the last game at Romney between the two teams, Oswego was giving a 2 minute minor for delay of game from throwing bagels on the ice. So now instead of getting hit with a minor for bagel throwing everybody is showing support for the club by wearing white shirts.

Now then as for the action this weekend between the Lakers and Cardnials here’s how the two clubs stack up. Leading Oswego in scoring is Jon Whitelaw with 11 goals and 19 assists good for 34 points. Plattsburgh’s leading scorer is Kyle Kudroch with 9 goals and 11 assists good for 20 points. Mathieu Cadieux has carried the load in goal for Plattsburgh with a record of 13-3-3 a 1.76 GAA and a .923 SV %, while Andrew Hare has done the same for Oswego with a record of 16-2-2 a GAA of 1.82 and a SV % of .928.


Coming into this matchup Oswego enters with the #1 ranked offense in Division III averaging 4.78 goals per game while Plattsburgh is #22 in the country at just over 3 goals per game. As for team defense Oswego and Plattsburgh ared tied for the 3rd best team defense in the nation allowing 1.78 goals per game. As for special teams the numbers are as follows. Oswego has the #10 Powerplay in the country at 25.19% while Plattsburgh is #34 at just over 19%. As for the pleanly kill Plattsburh has the #1 ranked kill in the nation at 93.4% while Oswegos kill is #10 in the country at 86.6%.

For all of you're viewing enjoyment here are the video highlights from last year's whiteout thanks to WTOP:


And finally just to make sure everybody is really, truly ready for whiteout, here is an awesome game video preview provided by die hard Lakers fan Robert Landgrebe:



So now the time has come. Whiteout night has arrived and it should be one hell of a hockey game!

Senior Weekend For Oswego State Comes Up Empty Against RIT

(Photo provided by Facebook)

Senior weekend has come and gone for the Oswego State Women's hockey team, and the weekend didn't quite go as planed for the girls, dropping both games to top ranked RIT. The first game Friday night when to RIT by a 4-0 score. The following recap of Friday night is provided by the Oswego State Athletic Department.

Top-ranked RIT (18-1-1, 11-1-1 ECAC West) notched three power-play goals in a 4-0 win over the Oswego State women's ice hockey team (9-9-2, 8-5-2 ECAC West) on Pink at the Rink night Friday at the Campus Center Ice Arena. Kolbee McCrea posted two goals, while Kourtney Kunichika finished with a goal and two assists.

Oswego State controlled play in the opening minutes before the Tigers tilted the rink in their favor. RIT got on the scoreboard courtesy of a tic-tac-toe play started at the point by Kourtney Kunichika, who moved the puck down to Kristina Moss. Moss then found Kolbee McCrea in the slot for the one-timer that went through Catherine Cote's legs at 10:21 in the first period 25 seconds into an Oswego State interference penalty.

McCrea tallied her second goal of the game at 18:17 on a breakaway after Ariane Yokoyama chipped a pass from along the left boards in front of the Laker bench into neutral territory to McCrea, who got behind the defense. Kunichika was also credited with an assist on the play that gave the Tigers a 2-0 lead heading into the first intermission.

Oswego State applied pressure in the opening stages of the second period, but the Lakers could not get pucks through the defense to test RIT goalie Laura Chamberlain. Each squad had opportunities midway through the frame due to defensive miscues during clearing attempts, but neither was able to put goals on the scoreboard until the Tigers scored less than a minute into an Oswego State slashing penalty. Erin Zach slid a pass through the crease to Lindsay Grigg, who was waiting at the far post for the easy tap-in goal.

Trailing 3-0, the Lakers had two quick power-play chances early in the frame with Jillian Bergeron clanging a shot off the right post, but did not score. RIT added its fourth goal in the final minute when Kunichika banged home the puck to light the lamp for her 12th marker of the season with the assist going to Yokoyama.

Cote ended the game with 29 saves, while Chamberlain posted fourth shutout of the year after registering 15 stops.

Over the course of the evening, Oswego State raised nearly $1,000 for the American Cancer Society through donations and bidding on a pink ice hockey jersey.

The pink at the rink game has been an annual event with this program and is worth a GREAT cause. The game was actually able to draw a nice size crowd inside the Cmapus Center

Since Pink at The Rink didn't go as planed as far as the score was concerned, teh team hoped Senior Day on Saturday would be better. It was but not by much as RIT walked away with the 2-1 win. The following recap is provided by the Oswego State Athletics Department.

The Oswego State women's ice hockey team (9-10-2, 8-6-2 ECAC West) bounced back from Friday night's shutout by pushing No. 1-ranked RIT to the final horn, but lost a 2-1 game Saturday afternoon at the Campus Center Ice Arena. Laker goalie Bridget Smith kept the home team within striking distance throughout the game, as she steered away 28 shots in a losing effort.

The Tigers dealt the first blow at 5:40 in the first period when Kourtney Kunichika recorded her 13th goal of the season, while RIT was skating 5-on-3. Kim Schlattman and Ariane Yokoyama were awarded assists on the goal.

However, Oswego State leveled the score with eight minutes left in the frame when Melissa Seamont deflected Breanne Reith's shot from the blue line past Tiger goalie Ali Binnington, who made 15 saves. It was only the eighth goal allowed this season by Binnington. Emily Marks got the secondary assist.

The pace picked up through a relatively whistle-free second period until Danielle Read's shot from the point after a pass from Kristina Moss went through traffic past Smith at 13:15, giving RIT a tenuous one-goal lead at intermission.

Both squads continued to carry the puck back-and-forth, but neither team was able to score. The Lakers went on the power play with 1:09 remaining in regulation allowing Oswego State to call timeout and pull Smith for a two-skater advantage.

Captain Kathryn Sbrocchi put a shot on goal forcing Binnington to get out of her stance to make the save with 14.4 seconds on the clock. A skirmish broke out at the end of the play, resulting in 11 penalties being handed out between both teams. Once the smoke cleared, Oswego State found itself skating 3-on-4 and taking a faceoff in its defensive zone to essentially end the game.

Following the game, the Lakers recognized the seven seniors on this year's squad: Megan Amlinger, Jillian Bergeron, Kelly Collins, Lauren Gilpin, Mackenzie Lee, Leah McNaughton, and Kathryn Sbrocchi (all pictured above).

OK a few things about the Senior Day game. First off the tip in by Semaont was the first Lakers goal at home since the loss to Hamilton after getting shut out for over 10 periods. The deflection goal reminded me a bit of Ryan Smyth of the Edmonton Oilers, who has made a career of deflection goals, so it seems Seamont channelled her inner Smyth. As far as the skermish at the end of the hockey game goes I have to admit I was quite impressed with the Lakers. Jillian Bergeron and Carly Marchment both showed toughness that hadn't been seen before, espically from Bergeron. It was a bigtime statement by the Lakers that they are not to be intimidated, and they will not be pushed around anymore. I loved the physical toughness showed by Oswego, it made one hell of a statement for teams down the road that this program isn't a pushover anymore and they will fight to the final horn every single night.

As far as the playoff push is concerend, the Lakers are guarenteed a playoff game this season with the Potsdam loss to Neuman over the weekend. Currently in a tie for 4th in Conference the Lakers are getting a guarenteed playoff game, now they just have to let the rest of the season play out to see where and who they will play in the opening round of the ECAC West playoffs. If the playoffs were to start tomorrow they would get a home game most likely against Potsdam.


The Lakers play their final four games of the regular season on the road starting next Friday when they face Division I Sacred Heart University at 7 p.m.


(Author's note: story will be done on the senior class at the end of hockey season in the year in review article)

Paul Rodrigues Lights Up Morrisville for 5 Goals as Part of 8-1 Route

(Photo provided by Facebook)

Paul Rodrigues had the best game of his college career to date, lighting up the Morrisville Mustangs for 5 goals en route to an 8-1 victory Saturday night in Morrisville. The game recap that follows was provided by the Oswego State Athletics Department.

The line of Paul Rodrigues, Jon Whitelaw, and Luke Moodie recorded six goals and seven assists to help the second-ranked Oswego State Hockey team(17-2-2, 10-0-2 SUNYAC) knock off Morrisville, 8-1, Saturday night at the IcePlex. Rodrigues erupted for five goals and an assist, while Moodie posted four assists. The win avenged an earlier 3-3 tie against the Mustangs (4-17-1, 3-10-1 SUNYAC) this season.

It did not take long for the Lakers to get the offense rolling as Rodrigues scored 43seconds into a Morrisville tripping penalty for his first goal of the contest at the 1:33 mark with Moodie and Whitelaw getting the helpers. Ian Boots made it a 2-0 game at 7:34 of the period.

Rodrigues, then, took control of the game by scoring the next four Oswego State goals over the next three periods. Moodie and Chris Ayotte found Rodrigues for his second power-play goal at 14:21 of the first. He completed the hat trick before the end of the first period at 18:57 with an assist to Farris, as the Lakers took a four-goal lead into the locker room.

Oswego State scored its third power-play goal of the game at 13:15 in the second period when Moodie and Whitelaw found linemate Rodrigues for his fourth marker, prompting a Mustang timeout. The goal proved to be the only score of the frame, as the Lakers held a 5-0 advantage with 20 minutes to play.

Rodrigues tallied his fifth and final goal of the contest at 6:48 in the third period just two seconds after Morrisville returned to full strength following a roughing penalty with Ayotte earning his second assist on the night. However, Morrisville ended the shutout bid less than two minutes later when Todd Hosmer posted his 14th goal of the season on the power play. Tom Langland and Alex Tillaart assisted the play at the 8:24 mark to make the score 6-1 in favor of the Lakers.

Shortly after, Whitelaw joined the scoring act with his tenth goal of the season at 9:42, as Rodrigues and Moodie were credited with assists. Chris Muise scored the last Oswego State goal of the game at 13:11 following a Mustang tripping penalty, as Boots and McConney picked up the assists.

The Lakers finished the game 4-for-10 with the extra skater, while Morrisville went 1-for-7.

Laker goaltender Andrew Hare stopped 23 of the 24 shots he faced to improve to 14-2-2this season. Morrisville's Christopher Azzano finished with seven saves on 11 shots in the first period, while Colin Breen made 35 saves in the relief appearance.

And of course here are the video highlights from Morrisville thanks to Mike Keeley, WNYO play-by-play voice:


Now in school history, prior to Rodrigues, there had been nine other times when a Lakers player had scored 5 goals in a game. The last one to do it was Brendan McLaughlin on November 25, 2005 at home against Buffalo State. Also the last Laker player to score 4 goals in a game was Neil Musselwhite, who scored 4 goals against Brockport at home on December 4th 2009. That night Neil went into the record books scoring the first ever short handed natural hat trick. And lets not forget about Chris Brown's Hat trick last week against Brockport. So as you can see Oswego has had some record setting games in the past few seasons.

The win kept Oswego State one point ahead of Plattsburgh for first place in the SUNYAC standings with four conference games remaining in the regular season. It also clinched a first-round bye for the Lakers in the SUNYAC playoffs, meaning they will host a post-season game on Saturday, February 25 at 7 p.m.