Box Score
GENESEO, N.Y. – With 57 seconds left in regulation, a defensive lapse by the Plattsburgh State men’s hockey team left Geneseo’s Devon Rice wide open in front of Plattsburgh goaltender Mathieu Cadieux. Rice seized the opportunity as the Cardinals suffered a 3-2 loss at the hands of the Ice Knights in a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) game Friday night at the Wilson Ice Arena.
Plattsburgh State (4-1-0, 4-1-0 SUNYAC) found itself in an early hole after Geneseo’s Ryan Bulach scored a power-play goal at the 10:46 mark of the first period. Zachary Vit and Jack Caradonna assisted on Bulach’s fourth tally of the year.
With 2:52 gone in the second period, Geneseo (4-4-1, 3-1-1 SUNYAC) goaltender Adrian Rubeniuk removed himself from the game, bringing sophomore Bryan Haude into the game. The Ice Knights appeared unaffected by the goalie change as Jonathan Sucese stretched the Geneseo lead to 2-0 at 3:12 of the second from David Ripple and Blake O’Connor.
The Cardinals climbed back into the game after the halfway point as the power-play unit continues to click. Nick Jensen netted a power-play goal at the 10:14 mark from Paul Puglisi to cut the deficit to 2-1. With Plattsburgh on another power-play, Luke Baleshta tied it up with 3:01 remaining in the middle period with his third of the year. Alex Jensen and Mike Grace were credited with assists on Baleshta’s goal.
While the third period saw 19 minutes of scoreless, penalty-free hockey, Rice proved to be the game-changer, beating Cadieux on the right side at 19:03 of the final period. Alex Lubczuk picked up an assists on the game-winning goal.
The Cardinals were held under 30 shots on goal for the first time this season, finishing the night with 25. The Ice Knights took 34 shots, outshooting Plattsburgh in the first and third periods.
Rubeniuk made nine saves for Geneseo before exiting the game. Haude recorded 14 saves in to earn his first win of the year. Cadieux made 31 stops in his first loss.
Plattsburgh will look to finish the weekend with a conference split as the Cardinals travel to Brockport tomorrow night. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
