MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. - RMU's four-goal second period bolstered the Colonials ahead to a 7-3 victory, earning their first sweep at home in the 2023-24 season. The Colonials are now 6-13-3 overall and Stonehill is 0-20-0.
1st PERIOD
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McKay Hayes gave RMU another early lead against the Skyhawks, slamming in a one-timer off a feed from
Jackson Reineke. Off a defensive zone turnover, the puck came to Reineke, laying off an unselfish pass to Hayes to bury home his first even-strength goal of his career.
- Later in the first period, the Skyhawks tied up the score. After a video review with the officials, the goal counted.
- RMU led in shots on goal through the first 20 minutes, 13-10.
2nd PERIOD
- About halfway through the second period,
Logan Ganie won a faceoff in the offensive zone. Off the draw, captain
Rylee St. Onge pounded in his fifth goal of the season.
- Under three minutes later, Greg Japchen scored a slap shot from distance to tie up the game, 2-2.
- Within two and a half minutes, the Colonials took control of the game, scoring three unanswered goals.
- Scoring the first of three, Hayes added his second of the game, cashing in off a rebound.
- St. Onge would then also add his second of the night. On the power-play, from the right circle, the St. Catharines, Ontario native sniped in his sixth goal of the campaign.
- Nine seconds later,
Cameron Hebert won a faceoff, finding
Gavin Gulash. Turning back, Gulash fed
Paul Maust in the slot and the veteran ripped in his first goal in a Colonial jersey. RMU took a 5-2 lead after 40 minutes of play.
3rd PERIOD
- After 15 minutes of action in the final frame, freshman
Walter Zacher made an impressive individual play to extend RMU's lead. Lurking in the neutral zone, Zacher snuck up on a Stonehill defenseman and stole the puck off his stick. Gliding in on a breakaway, Zacher put home his fourth point and third goal of the series.
- Just over a minute later, Anthony Galente scored Stonehill's third and final goal of the night to bring the score within three.
- With a few minutes left, the Skyhawks pulled their goalie to add an extra skater.
Cameron Hebert closed out the game, tapping in an empty-net goal, giving the Colonials a 7-3 victory and their first home sweep of the season.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Individually, freshman
George Krotiris led the roster in shots on goal with five. In the +/- department, freshman defenseman
Michael Craig posted the best +/- for the second consecutive night, owning a +3.
McKay Hayes also finished the night at a +3. As a team, the Colonials won 59.4% of faceoffs.
Logan Ganie won a team-high 14 draws on 21 attempts.
Dallas Tulik won eight of 13 and
Cameron Garvey earned his team possession 11 times on 17 faceoffs. Defensively,
Gabriel Lunn posted a team-high four blocks. In net, goaltender
Chad Veltri earned his second straight victory and 47th win of his career. The veteran stopped 28 shots pacing for a .903 save percentage.
MULTIPLE MULTIPOINT GAMES
In yesterday's game, six different players registered two points or more. Today, five more players chipped in on the scoresheet for a two-point game. Graduate forward
Dallas Tulik recorded two more assists, ending the series with five. He led all Colonials in points on the weekend, earning a point on a third of RMU's 15 goals. In his career, he's produced a multipoint game on 10 occasions. Captain
Rylee St. Onge cashed in twice, extending his point streak to three games. Working alongside Tulik at center, freshmen wingers
McKay Hayes and
Jackson Reineke each tallied two points. Hayes ended the night with two goals and Reineke dished out two assists.
COLONIAL FIRST
In game two of the series against Stonehill, graduate forward
Paul Maust unleashed a top-corner shot to score his first goal in an RMU sweater. The veteran now owns one goal and two assists on the season. From Butler, Pa., he's produced 17 goals and 17 assists totaling 34 points.
SPREADING THE WEALTH
Over the weekend, almost everyone added their name to the scoresheet as 17 different players earned a point against the Skyhawks. 13 skaters posted a point in last night's victory, reaching a season-high in that stat. Today, 11 total players finished with at least one point. The eight goals scored last night are an Atlantic Hockey season-high.
QUOTABLE
"It's our first home sweep in a long time so it was good to earn that. I think the game really switched when they (Stonehill) made it 2-2. That pushed us and we scored some very nice goals to end the second period. I thought we did a really nice job in the third to lock it down."
- Head Coach Derek Schooley
"It's been good to have a lot of guys step up for us. These freshmen aren't freshmen anymore and are playing huge minutes for us.
Walter Zacher had an incredible weekend and
George Krotiris has been outstanding for us. It was great to see
McKay Hayes score two and
Jackson Reineke has been a solid force as well.
Cameron Garvey and
Tanner Klimpke have also been dynamic whether they're on the scoresheet or not. Our leaders were outstanding too.
Rylee St. Onge and
Dallas Tulik had an incredible weekend."
- Head Coach Derek Schooley
"The schedule doesn't get easier at all for us now. We have Minnesota followed by RIT and then AIC. Those are three very good teams that are ranked or on the cusp of being ranked. Our schedule is going to get harder and quicker so it was great to get two wins at home."
- Head Coach Derek Schooley
UP NEXT
The Colonials will travel up north to play Minnesota for a two-game set. The first game will be played on Friday, January 12 at 7:00 p.m. and then the second game of the series will be played the following day at 5:00 p.m.
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