Box Score
 
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Alex Brenton scored twice as the Plattsburgh State men’s hockey team defeated Cortland, 4-1, in a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) game at the Stafford Ice Arena Friday night.
 
Brenton got the Cardinals (17-6-1, 12-2-1 SUNYAC) on the board at the 10:37 mark of the first period with a shot from a sharp angle that found its way past Cortland goaltender Lyle Rocker. Michael Cassidy was credited with an assist on the play, making a pass up the boards to Brenton on the move.
 
With 1:56 gone in the second period, the Red Dragons (7-14-3, 3-10-2 SUNYAC) tied it up just as their power play expired on Adam Bevilacqua’s 10^th of the year. Bevilacqua picked up a loose puck behind the net, brought it around front and lifted a shot that went behind Mathieu Cadieux and into the net.
 
Nine minutes later and in the midst of a five-minute power-play, Brenton deflected a Brandon Beadow shot to the left of Rocker to give Plattsburgh State a 2-1 lead after two periods of play.
 
The Cardinals took a two goal lead at 7:23 of the third period on a power-play goal by Connor Gorman. Paul Puglisi kept the puck from escaping the Cortland zone before Luke Baleshta tipped the puck up the boards to find Gorman for the goal.
 
Kevin Emmerling rounded out the scoring with his team-leading 12^th of the year at the 11:13 mark with a nice setup from Barry Roytman and Baleshta.
 
Plattsburgh finished the night with a sizeable 45-22 edge in shots on goal, including an 18-3 advantage through the first 20 minutes. The Cardinals went 2-for-6 on the power play while the Red Dragons were 0-for-1.
 
Cadieux stopped 21 of the 22 shots he faced to improve to 13-6-1. Appearing in his 25^th game as a Cardinal, Cadieux recorded his 1,000^th save at Plattsburgh with his first stop of the night.
 
Rocker turned away 41 shots in the loss for Cortland.
 
Prior to the game, Plattsburgh’s leading scorer Jared Docking was named the recipient of the 2013 Chartwells Fan Favorite Award. The award is given annually and is voted on by the fans.
 
With Friday’s SUNYAC games in the books, the top five spots in the postseason have been decided. Oswego clinched its fourth straight regular-season title with a 10-0 win at Potsdam while Plattsburgh State’s win over Cortland secured the second seed. Geneseo has one game remaining with Morrisville on Saturday, but the Ice Knights cannot finish lower than third. Buffalo State defeated Fredonia, 4-2, to lock up the fourth seed and bump Fredonia to the fifth spot. The final spot in the playoffs will come down to Brockport and Potsdam who are separated by one point. The official seedings will be announced by the conference following the conclusion of this weekend's games.
 
The Cardinals wrap up the regular season tomorrow night with a highly-anticipated matchup with the Oswego State Lakers. The first 2,000 fans in attendance will receive a free Cardinal Hockey rally towel provided by Absorbent Designs. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with a 7 p.m. puck drop.