2019 SUNYAC Men's Ice Hockey Tournament Semifinals

No. 3 Plattsburgh State (13-11-2) at No. 2 Oswego (18-5-2)

Saturday, February 23, 2019 • 7 p.m. • Oswego, N.Y. • Marano Campus Center Arena

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OSWEGO, N.Y. – The third-seeded Plattsburgh State men's ice hockey team continues its quest for its 24th conference title on Saturday evening at the Marano Campus Center Arena, as the Cardinals visit second-seeded Oswego State at 7 p.m. in the semifinal round of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Tournament.
 
TICKET PRICING: Tickets are $8 and can be purchased at tickets.oswego.edu... Students from SUNYAC schools with valid identification will be admitted free of charge.
 
ABOUT THE SERIES: In a series that dates back to 1975-76, the Cardinals are 79-41-8 all-time against the Lakers in what is one of the most historic rivalries in all of NCAA Division III athletics… Saturday will be the rubber match between the two teams, as Plattsburgh State and Oswego split their season series this year, with the Lakers prevailing, 4-0, on Dec. 8 at the Marano Campus Center Arena and the Cardinals winning, 2-1, on Feb. 16 at the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena... Plattsburgh State is 4-1-2 in its last seven contests against the Lakers inside the Marano Campus Center Arena.

ABOUT THE CARDINALS: Plattsburgh State is in the SUNYAC Tournament for the 28th consecutive season and enters Saturday's game riding a five-game winning streak... The Cardinal offense is led by freshman defenseman Matt Araujo, who has a team-leading 15 points on three goals and 12 assists... Senior forwards Cam Owens, Pat Egan and Cole Stallard and sophomore forward Rich McCartney are tied for the team lead in goals with seven, while Araujo has a team-leading 12 assists, which is tied for 21st in the SUNYAC… Sophomore goaltender Jimmy Poreda has enjoyed a breakout season in goal for the Cardinals, earning four SUNYAC Goaltender of the Week honors this year… He ranks among the NCAA Division III leaders in save percentage (eighth, .938), shutouts (tied for 11th, 3) and goals-against average (13th, 1.82)… On Thursday, Owens, Araujo and Poreda earned All-SUNYAC honors, with Owens earning a spot on the First Team and Araujo and Poreda each earning a place on the Second Team... Plattsburgh State boasts Division III's top penalty kill (.917) and is tied for 23rd nationally in scoring defense (2.38 goals allowed per game)… Head coach Bob Emery is in his 30th year piloting the Cardinal men's ice hockey program and boasts a career record of 624-214-65.

ABOUT THE LAKERS: Oswego is in pursuit of its 11th SUNYAC championship and its first since 2014... The Lakers are ranked at No. 5 in both the USCHO.com Men's Division III Top-15 Poll and the D3hockey.com Men's Top-15 Poll... Oswego is No. 4 in the most recent PairWise rankings, which are used to select the NCAA Division III Tournament field... In SUNYAC play, junior forward Anthony Passero ranks second in assists (17) and third in points (21) among all qualified conference players... Junior forward Josh Zizek is tied for the lead in conference play with four game-winning goals... In goal, the Lakers turn to junior goaltenders David Richer (12-4-2, 2.07 GAA, .908 save percentage) and Cedric Hansen (6-1-0, 1.48 GAA, .920 save percentage)... Among the All-SUNYAC honorees, Passero (First Team), sophomore defenseman Max Novick (First Team), junior defenseman Tyler Currie (Second Team) and junior forward Michael Gillespie (Third Team) represented Oswego... Nationally, the high-powered Laker offense ranks 10th with 3.96 goals per game... They also rank fifth in power-play percentage (.270) and sixth in scoring margin (2.04)... Head coach Ed Gosek is in his 16th season behind the Laker bench and is 324-95-29 overall.

WHAT'S NEXT: Top-seeded SUNY Geneseo is hosting fifth-seeded Fredonia in the other semifinal game... The highest-remaining seed will host the SUNYAC championship game on Saturday, March 2, at 7 p.m... The winner of the SUNYAC title will earn the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Tournament.