The Oswego State men’s hockey team has officially fallen out of the national rankings for Div. III after suffering its fourth straight loss after falling to Elmira College 4-3 last Saturday. The Lakers take on Nazareth College tonight at the Bill Gray’s Iceplex.

This is the second meeting of the two teams after an exhibition game earlier this season. Oswego State won the game 4-3 at the Marano Campus Center.

Oswego State will look to avoid falling under .500 and a fifth straight loss in this game. The Lakers’ current 7-7-0 record is the worst start since the 1998-1999 season. After 14 games, they were 8-6-0, then fell to 8-7-0 after game 15. George Roll was the head coach that season, and he now coaches Nazareth College.

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Last Time Out

Oswego State

Oswego State suffered its fourth straight loss against Elmira College last Saturday in a 4-3 loss. Similar to the 2003-2004 season, the Lakers’ fourth loss was against the Soaring Eagles. Freshman Alex DiCarlo scored his first, and second, collegiate goals in the loss. The first-year forward now has three multi-point games and six points total. Josh LeBlanc rounded out the scoring for Oswego State. Tyson Kirkby had two assists. Cedric Hansen played 20:31 of the game making seven saves on 10 shots, while David Richer played 38:33 making 12 saves on 13 shots.

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Nazareth College

The Golden Flyers had a weekend series against Amherst College and won both games 1-0 and 3-2. Jackson Shanley scored the lone goal in the 1-0 shutout victory. Sean Kuhn made 39 saves in the game, with individual periods of 10, 17 and 12 saves. In the second game, Connor David, James McDonald and Ray Falso all scored for Nazareth College. Brian Miller had two assists, while Falso chipped in an assist as well. Michael Tilford made 28 saves in the victory.

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By the Numbers

RECORD (conference)

OSW: 7-7-0 (6-1-0 SUNYAC)

NAZ: 7-4-2 (4-3-0 UCHC)

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GOALS (per game) [exhibition game]

OSW: 53 (3.8) [4]

NAZ: 43 (3.3) [3]

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SHOTS (per game) [shooting percentage] {exhibition game}

OSW: 513 (36.6) [10.3%] {35 / 11.4%}

NAZ: 376 (28.9) [11.4%] [21 / 14.3%]

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POWER PLAY (percentage) [exhibition game]

OSW: 11-55 (20.0%) [0-7 / 0.0%]

NAZ: 12-59 (20.3%) [1-5 / 20.0%]

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PENALTY KILL (percentage) [exhibition game]

OSW: 42-57 (73.7) [4-5 / 80.0%]

NAZ: 42-52 (80.8%) [7-7 / 100.0%]

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Statisic Leaders

Oswego State

Goals

1. Travis Broughman — 9
2. M. Emerson / J. Zizek / J. Sullivan / C. Fletcher — 4
3. M. Novick / J. Molinaro / T. Kirkby — 3

Assists

1. Anthony Passero — 13
2. Max Novick — 9
3. Joseph Molinaro — 7

Points

1. Anthony Passero — 16
2. Travis Broughman — 15
3. Max Novick — 12

Plus/Minus

1. Joseph Molinaro — +11
2. Max Novick / Carter Allen — +10
3. Travis Broughman — +7

Save Percentage (total saves)

1. David Richer — .902 (258)
2. Cedric Hansen — .819 (59)

Goals Against Average (goals allowed)

1. David Richer — 2.56 (28)
2. Cedric Hansen — 4.41 (13)

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Nazareth College

Goals

1. Ray Falso / James McDonald — 6
2. Zander Pryor — 5
3. Cole Moore — 3

Assists

1. Brian Miller — 12
2. Owen Kuhns / Henry McKinney — 8
3. Cole Moore — 6

Points

1. Brian Miller — 13
2. Ray Falso — 11
3. Owen Kuhns — 10

Plus/Minus

NOT LISTED ON COLLEGEHOCKEYTATS.NET

Save Percentage (total saves)

1. Sean Kuhn — .930 (277)
2. Michael Tilford — .901 (109)

Goals Against Average (goals allowed)

1. Michael Kuhn — 2.38 (21)
2. Michael Tilford — 2.82 (12)

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Starting Lineups

Oswego State

Forwards

Tanner Spink — Josh Zizek — Travis Broughman

Jody Sullivan — Tyson Kirkby — Jeff Solow

Mitch Emerson — Anthony Passero — Alex DiCarlo

Josh LeBlanc — Derek Brown — Joseph Molinaro

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Defense

Max Novick — Chris MacMillan

Carter Allen — Carson Vance

Tyler Antonucci — Tyler Currie

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Extra Skater

Ryan Bunka

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Goaltenders

David Richer

Cedric Hansen

Steven Kozikoski

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Scratches: Charlie Pelnik, Joey Scorpio, Michael Gillespie, Colton Fletcher

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Nazareth College

Forwards

Ray Falso — Zander Pryor — Brian Miller

Casey Kubara — James McDonald — Henry McKinney

Mateo Capriotti — Mitch Culver — Jackson Shanley

Michael Houlihan — J.T. Entelisano — Connor Davis

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Defense

Owen Kuhns — Grant Gallo

Sean Hallice — Cody Antonini

Matt Stanek — Cole Moore

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Extra Skater

Ean Mendeszoon

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Goaltenders

Sean Kuhn

Michael Tilford

Gage Roberts

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Players to Watch

OSW: Josh Zizek

Josh Zizek is not so much a player to watch to see what he does on the ice performance-wise but to see how he responds. He is the captain of a team with 12 other seniors, and a strong core of forwards, that is now .500 and no longer nationally-ranked. Zizek needs to play with confidence, and make sure to spark the younger players who might be feeling down.

NAZ: J.T. Enseliano

After a year and a half at Utica College, J.T. Enseliano will be playing his first game with Nazareth College. The sophomore only played in two games this season with the Pioneers, and has six points after his freshman year. He will be on the fourth line in his first game with the purple and gold. As a member of Nazareth College, he will remain in the UCHC and face his former team one more time on Jan. 31.

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SUNYAC Update

The SUNYAC standings remain the same since there were no league games played on Friday. The only thing that has changed is overall records.

SUNYAC Standings

1. Oswego State — 12 points (7-7-0 overall, 6-1-0 SUNYAC)
2. SUNY Geneseo — 11 points (12-2-1 overall, 5-1-1 SUNYAC)
3. Morrisville State — 10 points (8-7-0 overall, 5-3-0 SUNYAC)
4. The College at Brockport — 10 points (9-6-0 overall, 5-4-0 SUNYAC)
5. Plattsburgh State — 7 points (4-8-1 overall, 3-3-1 SUNYAC)
6. Buffalo State — 6 points (6-6-1, 3-3-0 SUNYAC)
7. SUNY Cortland — 6 points (5-7-1, 3-6-0 SUNYAC)
8. SUNY Potsdam — 5 points (3-12-1 overall, 2-6-1 SUNYAC)
9. SUNY Fredonia — 3 points (2-7-4 overall, 1-6-1 SUNYAC)

SUNYAC Schedule

• Oswego State travels to Nazareth College (non-league) tonight for a 7 p.m. puck drop
• SUNY Geneseo travels to Elmira College (non-league) tonight for a 7 p.m. game
• Morrisville State does not play again until Jan. 24 and 25 for a weekend series against Buffalo State, with both games at 7 p.m.
• The College at Brockport plays again on Friday at Anna Maria College (non-league) in Paxton, Massachusetts, for a 4:40 p.m. game
• Plattsburgh State hosts Wesleyan University (non-league) tonight for a 7 p.m. puck drop
• Buffalo State will host Bryn Athyn College (non-league) on Jan. 18 and 19 for a weekend series. Saturday is 7 p.m., while Sunday is 5 p.m.
• SUNY Cortland hosts Wilkes University (non-league) tonight for a 5 p.m. game
• SUNY Potsdam hosts SUNY Canton (non-league) tonight for a 7 p.m. puck drop
• SUNY Fredonia will host SUNY Canton (non-league) for a weekend series on Jan. 17 and 18, with start times of 7 p.m. and 4 p.m.

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Prediction

Oswego State needs to improve its defense and puck possession, as that has been a key concern over the last week or so — especially against Utica College, resulting in two of four of the Pioneers’ goals. In a unique change, Jeff Solow is on offense tonight, which could be interesting to see, since he is a puck-moving defenseman and has some strong speed behind him.

These two teams already faced once in an exhibition game at the beginning of the year, but Oswego State is now on a four-game losing streak, and Nazareth College is on a two-game winning streak. A lot has changed since late October.

It will be interesting to see how David Richer responds after being pulled against Utica College and then coming in relief for Cedric Hansen against Utica College.

Prediction: 3-2 Oswego State over Nazareth College, ending its four-game losing streak.

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Photo by Alexis Fragapane | The Oswegonian