Hockey takes down Rutgers, improves to 4-0

October 9, 2017

Freshman forward Ian Bernes (No. 96, above) in a game against Rutgers on Saturday, Oct. 7. Bernes scored the first goal of the game which ended in a 5-3 win for the Seawolves against the Rutgers Ice Knights. *PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVE STUFFLEBEAM*

Stony Brook Hockey stayed hot Saturday night when they beat the Rutgers Ice Knights 5-3 at The Rinx in Hauppauge.

Stony Brook peppered Rutgers senior goalie Christopher Marsillo with 15 shots in the opening frame. They managed two goals against Marsillo, who posted a .875 save percentage in the game. The Seawolves’ first goal came via freshman forward Ian Bernes and was followed by a power play goal off the stick of sophomore forward Kevin Murphy. Stony Brook dominated possession in the first and kept the play in Rutgers’ end for the majority of the period.

The Seawolves kept their offense going in the middle frame when they outscored the Ice Knights 3-1. Senior defenseman Frank Sherding and junior forward Brad Riccardi scored the team’s third and fifth goals of the game respectively, while Bernes cashed in for his second goal of the night and the team’s fourth.

Bernes’ two goals gave him four goals in four games this season. He now leads the team in goal scoring.

“I think coach just has a good group of guys with me,” Bernes said. “My linemates really help me out and I couldn’t really do it without them. In practice, we’ve been working so well as a unit and it just plays off in a game perfectly.”

Rutgers showed defensive determination in the third period, keeping Stony Brook off the board despite quality scoring chances. The Ice Knights’ hard work paid off with 5:43 to go in regulation when freshman forward Mathew Sanchez put one past Seawolves sophomore goalie Brandon Rathwell. With new life, Rutgers proceeded to score a power play goal with 2:49 remaining. Although momentum was swinging in favor of the away team, a Rutgers penalty allowed Stony Brook to kill the clock and hold on to the 5-3 win.

“We started to get a little panicky and that’s something we have to work on,” head coach Chris Garofalo said. “It has to do with being mentally tough. This is probably the first time we’ve faced adversity and we need to get a little stronger with doing that.”

Stony Brook improved to a perfect 4-0 record this season after Saturday’s win and a 7-2 victory over Rutgers the previous night. This is the team’s best start since the 2015-16 squad won its first five games.

The team will next take the ice when they host the Rhode Island Rams for two games on Friday, Oct. 13 at 9 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 14 at 5 p.m..