ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The SUNY Geneseo men's ice hockey team was unable to close out the regular season on a win, falling at Nazareth on Saturday evening by a score of 7-4. The Ice Knights finished the season 20-4-1 overall and 16-3-1 in the UCHC, while Nazareth improves to 8-15-2 and 4-14-2 in the conference.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Both teams struggled to find the back of the net early in the first period, but the Golden Flyers were the first to break the 0-0 tie at 12:37 into the period. Although Geneseo couldn't find the equalizer before the end of the period, Zach Purcell put the Ice Knights on the board less than a minute into the second period off assists by Sterling Wolters and Tommy Winn.
- Alex Dameski gave Geneseo a 2-1 lead just over five minutes after Purcell's goal, with goaltender Jacob Torgner picking up the assist on the play. Unfortunately, Nazareth was able to answer back before the end of the second period, and took a 4-2 lead to the final 20 minutes.
- The Ice Knights went on to trail 5-2 early in the third, but Carter Diceman gave them some life with a power play goal cutting the lead back down to two with just over eight minutes left to play. Geneseo was unable to keep the momentum going and complete the comeback, and ultimately fell 7-4.
QUICK FACTS:
- Dameski tallied two goals for the Ice Knights, while Purcell also chipped in two points with one goal and one assist.
- Jacob Torgner tallied 26 saves in goal.
- Geneseo finishes the regular season with 20 wins, their sixth time recording 20 wins in the last seven seasons.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Geneseo will be the No. 2 seed for the UCHC tournament, earning a first round bye. They will host the semifinal round on Saturday, March 1 at 7 p.m. in the Ira S. Wilson Arena.
