Men's Hockey | 3/14/2009 11:13:56 PM

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ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT men's hockey team staved off elimination on Saturday with a 6-4 win over Holy Cross in game two of the best-of-three quarterfinal series of the 2009 Atlantic Hockey Association Tournament. The win gives RIT their 22nd win of the season, a Division I school record. The Tigers have not been swept in a weekend series this season.

These same two teams will face off on Sunday evening at 7:05 in game three of the best-of-three series. The winner advances to the semifinals next weekend at Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester.  Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students.  Tickets are on sale Sunday at the Gordon Field House from 12-5 p.m.

“We played with much more emotion tonight,” said RIT Head Coach Wayne Wilson. “It was a must win, and we won it, to set up what should be a great game tomorrow night.”

Brennan Sarazin (Nepean, Ontario/Nepean Raiders) (Nepean, ON) and Tyler Brenner (Linwood, Ontario/Elmira Sugar Kings) (Linwood, ON) led RIT with a goal and two assists apiece. Dan Ringwald (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Blades) (Oakville, ON) had a goal and an assist and #Chris Haltigin (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Blades)# (Oakville, ON) and Bobby Raymond (Lucknow, Ontario/Owen Sound) (Lucknow, ON) each had a goal.

RIT took a 1-0 lead with an even strength goal at 16:43 of the first period. Sean Murphy (Owatonna, Minn./Green Bay Gamblers) (Owatonna, MN) ripped a slap shot from the slot. Holy Cross goalie Ian Dams made the save but lost sight of the puck as it crept between his legs. Bobby Raymond (Lucknow, Ontario/Owen Sound) sped in from his defensive position and poked home the loose puck for his sixth of the season and first of the post season.

Louis Menard (Chicoutimi, Quebec/Ottawa Senators) (Chicoutimi, PQ) was sharp for RIT in the first period. None more so than with 12:50 remaining he made two big saves. Jay Silvia fired a shot that Menard saved the rebound came to Brodie Sheahan who one-timed a shot. Menard slid across his crease and made the pad save keeping the game scoreless.

Chris Haltigin (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Blades) made it 2-0 RIT 1:55 into the second period. He fired a wrist shot through a screen that Dams never saw. Tyler Brenner (Linwood, Ontario/Elmira Sugar Kings) kept the puck in the zone for RIT and #Alan Mazur (Burnaby, British Columbia/Merritt Centennials)# (Burnaby, BC) had the other assist on the play as he fed it to Haltigin.

J.P. Martignetti ripped a perfectly placed slap shot that cut RIT's lead to 2-1. Brodie Sheahan and Matt Davis had the assists on the play.

Dan Ringwald (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Blades) gave the Tigers a two-goal lead at 8:11 of the second. Stevan Matic (Burnaby, British Columbia/Langley Hornets) (Burnaby, BC) won the face-off inside the Holy Cross zone. Brent Alexin (West Seneca, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres) (West Seneca, NY) gathered the puck, skated around the back of the net and found a wide open Ringwald in the slot. His wrist shot beat Dams cleanly.

Jordan Cyr poked home a loose puck in front of Louis Menard (Chicoutimi, Quebec/Ottawa Senators) who was pushed into the net by a Crusaders forward.

Brennan Sarazin (Nepean, Ontario/Nepean Raiders) gave the Tigers a 4-2 lead with a short-handed goal at 16:54 of the second. Matt Davis tried to dump the puck in. The puck was deflected into the neutral zone by Sarazin who out-raced two Holy Cross defenders and beat Dams for RIT's eleventh short handed goal of the season.

Brodie Sheahan scored 5-on-3 power play goal at 18:02 of the second to make it 4-3. Kyle Atkins and Mark Znutas had the assists.

Tyler Brenner (Linwood, Ontario/Elmira Sugar Kings) gave RIT a 5-3 lead at 5:08 of the third period with a power play tally. Brennen Sarazin fed Brenner who back-handed a shot for his twelfth of the season. It was RIT's first power play goal in nine chances so far in the quarterfinals.

Peter Lorinser tallied a short-handed goal at 7:48 of the third period to make it a 5-4 score. He intercepted an attempted breakout pass by Cameron Burt (Detroit, Mich./Green Bay Gamblers) and broke in on Menard, beating him with a wrist shot.

Cameron Burt (Detroit, Mich./Green Bay Gamblers) (Detroit, MI) gave RIT its fifth two-goal lead of the night with a power play goal at 16:19 of the third. He ripped a slap shot from the face-off circle on assists from Tyler Brenner (Linwood, Ontario/Elmira Sugar Kings).

RIT out shot Holy Cross 36-32. The Tigers were 2-for-8 with the man advantage, while Holy Cross is 1-for-6. Each team scored a short-handed goal.

Louis Menard (Chicoutimi, Quebec/Ottawa Senators) picked up the win, allowing four goals and making 28 saves. Ian Dams took the loss allowing six goals making 30 saves.