BUFFALO, N.Y. – SUNY Geneseo senior forward David Ripple notched two goals and two assists while senior forward Stephen Collins added two goals and an assist to lead the No. 11/12 Knights past No. 15 Buffalo State, 6-1, in the semifinals of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, Saturday.

Junior forward Trevor Hills added two goals and an assist during a five-goal third period that broke open a 1-1 game after 40 minutes of play.

The third-seeded Knights (17-4-6) advance to play top-seeded Plattsburgh on the road in the SUNYAC Championship game, to be played next Saturday (March 5). Plattsburgh defeated Oswego, 4-3, in the night's other semifinal. 

Buffalo State (15-7-4) got on the board first as senior forward Cory Gurski broke free for a one-on-one opportunity and slid a short shot between first-year goalie Devin McDonald's pads for the 1-0 lead at 12:05 for the lone goal of the first period. 

Following a Buffalo State boarding penalty, Ripple tipped a right-wing shot by senior defenseman Matt Solomon on a crowded crease past Buffalo State junior goalie Mike DeLaVergne at 8:09 as the teams headed to the third period tied 1-1. 

Forty seconds into the third period Hills sent a pass from the left wing behind the Bengal net to first-year forward Anthony Marra, who fed Collins in the slot for a scoring slap shot that kicked off the decisive run. 

Geneseo took advantage of a five-minute major penalty called on Buffalo State with two more power-play goals that made it a 4-1 edge with 10:50 remaining. Collins deflected a slap-shot from the point off Ripple in front of the crease past DeLaVergne with 14:24 on the clock before Hills took a back-door Collins feed and scored on a top-shelf shot from left face-off circle for the three-goal cushion. 

Buffalo State pulled DeLaVergne for an extra skater with 8:55 remaining in the period, but Geneseo tacked on a pair of empty net tallies by senior forward AJ Sgaraglio and first-year forward Arthur Gordon during a two-minute span to put the game out of reach with 4:47 left in regulation.

Geneseo advances to its second SUNYAC Championship in three years after also appearing in the 2014 finals. The top-seeded Knights fell to third-seeded Oswego, 7-6, before receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament that culminated with a run to the Frozen Four.