FREDONIA, N.Y. – The 2019-2020 edition of Morrisville Men's Ice Hockey took to the ice on Friday evening, opening their State Universities of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) slate with a 4-3 overtime win on the road at Fredonia.
THE BASICS
- Final Score: Morrisville 4, Fredonia 3 OT
- Location: Fredonia, N.Y.
- Records: Morrisville (1-0-0, 1-0-0 SUNYAC), Fredonia (0-1-0, 0-1-0 SUNYAC)
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Morrisville struck first, converting on a power play opportunity at the 9:44 mark in the first period. Eric Melso (Philadelphia, Pa.) found the back of the net with his first collegiate goal to give the Mustangs the early 1-0 lead. Christian Vella (Rochester, N.Y.) and Nick DeVito (Averill Park, N.Y.) picked up the assists.
- However, as the first period wore on, momentum quickly swung to the Blue Devils side as the home squad evened the score at the 12:10 mark.
- Despite being outshot 17-11 in the first, the Mustangs were able to hold Fredonia scoreless for the rest of the frame.
- The Blue Devils came out hot in the second, as Ryan Dunner scored his second of the game just 36 seconds into the middle period.
- Just as the Blue Devils shifted the momentum in the first, the Mustangs responded in kind in the second.
- DeVito found the equalizer at the 12:10 mark in the second period with a short-handed tally. Ben Sprague (Norfolk, N.Y.) collected the assist.
- Morrisville looked for the go-ahead-goal early in the third period. After both sides were whistled for penalties, one of which was a five minute major on the Blue Devils, the Mustangs went on a three-minute power play.
- Unfortunately, the Mustangs fell short on the power play.
- After executing the penalty kill, Fredonia went on the offensive, taking the 3-2 advantage just under seven minutes into the third.
- Morrisville fought right back, as Melso scored his second of the game on a breakaway at the 9:49 mark. Aidan Conolly (Rochester, N.Y.) and goaltender, Jared Young (Pueblo West, Colo.) were credited with the assists.
- Neither squad was able to find the game-winner during the back half of the third period, pushing the SUNYAC opener for both teams into overtime.
- The Mustangs worked to get their offense going at the 2:12 mark in overtime as they went on the power play. Fredonia killed the penalty, but the momentum gained led to a two vs two breakaway as the last minute of play began to dwindle down.
- The combo of DeVito and Ryan Bochert (Denver, Colo.) occupied the two Fredonia defenders, allowing Melso to streak up the ice. DeVito linked up with Bochert, who found Melso, who in turn found the back of the net for the hat trick and overtime game winner.
- Young picked up the victory in net for the Mustangs, recording 41 saves.
WHAT'S NEXT
- The Mustangs return to the ice for the second game of their SUNYAC series with Fredonia at 7 PM on Saturday night.
SUNY Morrisville'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 and World Report Best Colleges 2019 issue and was also recognized in the Top Public Schools, Regional Colleges North in the
2019 Best Colleges rankings. For more information about SUNY Morrisville, visit
www.morrisville.edu.
#30#
