Men's Hockey | 2/7/2017 11:55:00 AM
ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT men's hockey team returns home to take on College of The Holy Cross for a pair of crucial Atlantic Hockey Conference games on Friday, Feb. 10 and Saturday, Feb. 11 from the Gene Polisseni Center. Game times for both contests are at 7:05 p.m.
Tickets for both games are available at the Gene Polisseni Center and Gordon Field House Box Offices, or by calling (585) 475-4121 or by visiting
www.rithockey.com. Friday is Fan Appreciation Night with countless giveaways throughout the evening. It is RIT hockey's alumni weekend. Several alumni from RIT's rich history will be back in Rochester with a special alumni game to be played on Saturday afternoon.
The two-time defending Atlantic Hockey Champion Tigers play four of their final five regular season contests at home. RIT (11-17-1, 11-12-0 Atlantic Hockey) enters the weekend seventh in the league standings with 22 points, while Holy Cross (12-10-6, 9-7-6 Atlantic Hockey) is just ahead in a tie for fourth in Atlantic Hockey with 24 points. RIT is just two points out of fourth and four away from third.
Last weekend, RIT earned a split at league foe Robert Morris, winning 4-1 on Friday, while falling 3-1 on Saturday. Friday,
Abbott Girduckis (Belleville, Ontario/Wellington Dukes) scored a career-high two goals, while
Liam Kerins (Caledon, Ontario/North York Rangers), and
Brady Norrish (Strongfield, Saskatchewan/Yorkton Terriers) also scored and
Caleb Cameron (Sundridge, Ontario/Listowel Cyclones) added two assists.
Mike Rotolo (Rochester, NY/Cedar Rapids Roughriders) made 34 saves in the victory. Saturday, Girduckis scored RIT's lone goal, while Rotolo was strong in net once again, making 38 saves on 40 shots.
Erik Brown (Keene, Ontario/Kemptville 73's) leads the Tigers in scoring with 14 goals and 24 points, while
Caleb Cameron (Sundridge, Ontario/Listowel Cyclones) and
Gabe Valenzuela (Brampton, Ontario/North York Rangers) both have 20 points on six goals and 14 assists. Thirteen different players have at least 10 points, while eight have at least 16 points. In net,
Mike Rotolo (Rochester, NY/Cedar Rapids Roughriders) has played in 28 games this season and has a 2.71 goals against average and an .898 save percentage.
Holy Cross comes into the weekend series having gone 6-2-3 over its last 11 games, all in league play. Last weekend, the Crusaders swept a home-and-home series against American International, winning 3-1 on Feb. 2 and 8-2 on Feb. 3. Danny Lopez leads Holy Cross in scoring with 17 goals and 30 points, while Mike Barrett has a team-high 16 assists and is second on the squad with 22 points. Paul Berrafato has played all 28 games in net for Holy Cross, with a 12-10-6 record, 2.78 goals against average and an .898 save percentage.
This weekend marks the only two meetings between the two schools this season. RIT holds a 24-12-7 edge in the all-time series, including a 20-7-7 mark since 2006. Last season, RIT and Holy Cross skated to a pair of ties at the Gene Polisseni Center.
Both games will be aired live on Time Warner Cable Sports 26 in Rochester, with Gene Battaglia and John DiTullio on the call from the Polisseni Center. The new pregame show with host Kevin Roche airs at 6:30 p.m. In addition, both contests will be broadcast over the airwaves on WITR 89.7 FM and
witr.rit.edu, while streaming
video and
live stats will available.
Come out and support the Tigers as they attempt to win their straight Atlantic Hockey Championship.
