NCAA Quarterfinal Preview Oswego vs Adrian

The field for the NCAA Division III National championship is now down to the elite eight. And for the 2nd time in three years the Oswego State Lakers and Adrian Bulldogs will go head to head in the tournament. The winner earns a spot in the Frozen Four of the NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Tournament against the winner of Norwich/Babson. The teams have split the all-time series, 1-1. Oswego State won the first matchup, 5-2, in Oswego on Jan. 8, 2010. Adrian took the most recent matchup, a 5-3 win in the 2011 national semifinal in Minneapolis, Minn.

To get a better understanding of just how good these two clubs have been this season, here's a few interesting stats on how these teams have fared in the past. Both squads registered 23 wins this season, which is tied for the best in Division III with St. Norbert and Norwich. Oswego State is making its 12th NCAA Tournament appearance and program-best fourth straight, while Adrian is making its third overall appearance. The Lakers are 6-3-0 in games decided by two goals or less, while the Bulldogs are 11-0-3. - Oswego State is 18-1-0 when scoring the first goal. Adrian is 14-1-1 in Arrington Ice Arena this year and 16-0-1 when putting the first goal on the scoreboard. The Lakers are 17-0-0 when leading after the first period and 22-0-0 when leading after two frames. Oswego State likes to get out to a fast start, as it has out-scored its opponents 55-22 in the first period. Adrian finishes games strong, as it has out-scored its opponents 54-16 in the third period. Both squads are highly successful when scoring power-play goals, as Oswego State is 17-2-0 when scoring with an extra attacker compared to Adrian, which is 18-1-3. Seventeen of the Lakers' 23 wins have been by three goals or more, while 12 of Adrian's 23 wins have also been by three goals or more.

So now that we have got you fired up, lets take a closer look at how these two clubs match up head to head. The following is stats nationally, and where both teams rank in Division III Hockey.

Team Offense:
Oswego: 4.93 Goals per Game #2 in Nation
Adrian: 5.00 Goals per Game #1 in Nation

Team Defense:
Oswego: 1.74 Goals Per Game #3 in Nation
Adrian: 2.19 Goals per Game T-13th in Nation

Power Play:
Oswego: 40 for 147 for 27.21% #5 in Nation
Adrian: 42 for 130 for 32.31% #1 in Nation

Penalty Kill:
Oswego: 97 of 113 for 85.8% #13 in Nation
Adrian:117 of 141 for 83% #25 in Nation

Top Scorers:

Oswego:
Paul Rodrigues- 14 Goals 30 Assists 44 Points
Luke Moodie- 22 Goals 19 Assists 41 Points
Chris Muise- 9 Goals 23 Assists 32 Points
Chris Brown- 7 Goals 23 Assists 30 Points
Jon Whitelaw- 9 Goals 20 Assists 29 Points
Chris Ayotte- 13 Goals 20 Assists 23 Points

Adrian:
Zach Graham- 14 Goals  24 Assists  38 Points
Shaquille Merasty-  21 Goals  16 Assists  37 Points
Josh Cousineau- 12 Goals  24 Assists  36 Points
Josh Ranalli- 17 Goals  17 Assists  34 Points
Shelby Gray- 12 Goals  14 Assists  26 Points
Andrew Dovey-  11 Goals  10 Assists  21 Points

Goaltending:

Oswego:
Andrew Hare- 19-4-0 .935 SV%   1.74 GAA 6 SO
Dan Jones- 2-0-0 .934 SV%  1.56 GAA
Justin Gilbert- 2-0-0 .944 SV%  1.55 GAA

Adrian:
James Hamby- 12-0-1 .914 SV%  2.14 GAA 1 SO
Scott Shackell- 11-1-2 .931 SV%  1.91 GAA 1 SO

Puck Drop for this game is set for 7PM from Arrington Ice Arena!

(Stats provided by the Oswego State Athletic Department and USCHO.com)