PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The No. 13 Plattsburgh State men's ice hockey team posted its largest margin of victory over rival and sixth-ranked Oswego State since Feb. 4, 2000, as the Cardinals downed the Lakers by a 6-1 final on Friday evening in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) action at the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena.
 
Oswego is ranked at No. 6 in the DCU/USCHO.com Men's Division III Top-15 Poll, while Plattsburgh State is ranked at No. 13.
 
It marked the third meeting between the two teams so far this season, with Oswego holding the upper hand in the first two games. The Lakers prevailed, 5-1, on their home ice on Nov. 4 before winning, 2-1, in the Comfort Inn Complex Winter Classic championship game at the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena on Jan. 7. On Friday night, however, Plattsburgh State avenged the previous two losses to pick up two big conference points.
 
The Cardinals doubled up the Lakers in shots on goal, 44-22, while both teams scored once on the power play. Plattsburgh State finished 1-for-4, while Oswego was 1-for-5.
 
Plattsburgh State rises to 12-4-2 overall (5-2-1 SUNYAC) with the win and hosts SUNY Cortland tomorrow night at 7 p.m. on Hall of Fame Celebration Night. The 1980-81 team will be honored at the first intermission, while the 2000-01 team will be recognized at the second intermission in addition to a message from legendary head coach Bob Emery, and Plattsburgh State Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2022 member, on the videoboard pregame. Oswego falls to 11-6-1 overall (7-2-0 SUNYAC) with the loss and next visits SUNY Potsdam tomorrow at 7 p.m.
 
Senior defenseman Jacob Modry (Albany, N.Y./Merrimack College) put the Cardinals on the board and made the stress balls rain down on the ice with a goal 5:27 into the contest. Modry won a battle for the puck along the boards in the defensive zone and got a pass forward to first-year forward Riley Sutherland (Burlington, Ontario/St. Michael's Buzzers). Sutherland led an odd-man rush into the offensive zone and passed to Modry in the high slot before Modry buried a shot past the goalie high glove side.
 
Sutherland made it a 2-0 game with 12:03 elapsed in the first. First-year defenseman Spencer Bellina (Medina, Ohio/Chippewa Steel) passed D-to-D to Modry on the left point, and Modry wristed a shot that Sutherland redirected past the goaltender from the slot.
 
While neither team scored in the second period, the Cardinals' momentum cascaded in the opening minutes of the third, which began with a goal by first-year forward Ryan Bonfield (Kemptville, Ontario/Brockville Braves) 41 seconds into the frame. Senior forward Adam Tretowicz (Baldwinsville, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres) forced a turnover along the back wall and fed Bonfield out in front, and Bonfield scored on a one-time shot from the slot.
 
Junior forward Carson Gallagher (Courtice, Ontario/Sacred Heart University) extended the lead to 4-0 at 3:07 of the third. Graduate student defenseman Matt Araujo (Brookhaven, N.Y./Boston Jr. Rangers) passed to senior defenseman Ryan Hogg (Duncan, British Columbia) in the defensive zone, and Hogg's pass to Gallagher broke the Cardinals forward into the neutral zone. Gallagher eluded three Oswego defenders in his vicinity and sent a puck toward the net that slid under the goalie's right pad.
 
Sophomore forward Luk Jirousek (Whitehorse, Yukon/Alberni Valley Bulldogs) entered the scoring column with a power-play goal at 6:29 of the third. After Jirousek took a shot that was saved, junior forward Paul Bryer (Clarkston, Mich./Islanders Hockey Club) passed to Gallagher on the weak side, and Gallagher fed Jirousek in the slot. Jirousek scored on a one-timer high glove side for his sixth goal of the year.
 
At 13:32 of the third, junior forward Bennett Stockdale (Ottawa, Ontario/University of Alabama in Huntsville) added even further insurance. Junior defenseman Kevin Weaver-Vitale (Toronto, Ontario/Markham Royals) chipped a pass back to first-year defenseman Brannon Butler (Toronto, Ontario/Boston Advantage) in the defensive zone, and Butler sent a cross-ice pass to Stockdale to help him gain the zone. Stockdale turned sharply to evade a Laker defender, which gave him a clear path to the goal down the slot. He then uncorked a shot from the slot that beat the goalie blocker side.
 
Oswego erased the shutout bid with a power-play goal with 4:04 remaining. Senior forward Alex DiCarlo backhanded a pass back to senior defenseman Quinn Warmuth on the left point, and Warmuth clapped a one-time shot that first-year forward Matt McQuade deflected into the back of the goal.
 
First-year goaltender Eli Shiller (Toronto, Ontario/Wellington Dukes) made 21 saves in the win for the Cardinals, while first-year goaltender Cal Schell shouldered the loss for the Lakers, making 30 stops against four goals allowed before handing the reins off to junior goaltender Richie Parent for the final 16:16. Parent stopped eight of the 10 shots that he faced on goal.