College Hockey Stats Box Score

MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – Sophomore forward Rich McCartney (Hershey, Pa./Philadelphia Revolution), the reigning State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Rookie of the Year, scored twice, as the Plattsburgh State men's ice hockey team defeated Morrisville State College, 5-1, in the Cardinals' regular-season and SUNYAC opener on Friday evening at the IcePlex. It also marked the SUNYAC opener for Morrisville.
 
While the score wound up lopsided in favor of the Cardinals, Plattsburgh State finished with a slim 34-30 margin in shots. Both teams went 0-for-6 on the power play.
 
Plattsburgh State rises to 1-0-0 overall (1-0-0 SUNYAC) with the win, while Morrisville drops to 0-3-0 overall (0-1-0 SUNYAC) with the loss. The two teams finish the weekend series tomorrow evening at 7 p.m.
 
Sophomore forward Greg Malafronte (Colts Neck, N.J./New Jersey Titans) put the Cardinals on the board 7:17 into the first period, as he cashed in on a feed from freshman forward Daniil Ovchinnikov (Saint Petersburg, Russia/Boston Jr. Rangers). Ovchinnikov's assist marked his first collegiate point.
 
After taking a 1-0 lead into the intermission, Plattsburgh State scored twice in the first 2:28 of the second period to build a 3-0 advantage. McCartney netted what wound up being the game-winner 1:02 into the period, relying on assists from senior forward Cam Owens (Wilmington, Mass./Islanders Hockey Club) and junior forward Joe Drabin (Rochester, N.Y./Wenatchee Wild), while senior forward Ross Sloan (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Blades) scored a shorthanded, unassisted goal with 2:28 elapsed in the second.
 
Morrisville erased the shutout bid with 7:18 gone in the second, as freshman forward Ben Sprague capitalized on feeds from junior forward Ryan Bochert and senior forward Jimmy Philbin. Owens added to the Cardinal lead with 3:09 left in the period, scoring on assists from senior forward Pat Egan (Rochester, N.Y./Lone Star Brahmas) and freshman defenseman Ian Wallgren (Stockholm, Sweden/Connecticut Oilers). Wallgren's assist marked his first collegiate point.
 
Finally, with 16:17 gone in the third, McCartney put the game on ice with his second goal of the evening. Freshman forward Christian DiFelice (Thorold, Ontario/Buffalo Jr. Sabres) and freshman defenseman Matt Araujo (Brookhaven, N.Y./Boston Jr. Rangers) each earned their first collegiate assist on the play.
 
Sophomore goaltender Jimmy Poreda (Tonawanda, N.Y./Connecticut Jr. Rangers) made 28 stops in the win for the Cardinals, while freshman goaltender Jorgen Johnson turned aside 29 shots in the loss for the Mustangs.