Men's Hockey | 12/7/2011 10:31:00 AM

ROCHESTER, NY -- The RIT men's hockey team will host the American International Yellow Jackets in a pair of exciting Atlantic Hockey Association contests at Ritter Arena on Friday, December 9 and Saturday, December 10, with both games starting at 7:05 p.m.  The two games will be RIT's final home games of the 2011 calendar year.

Locker Room Sports and Austin Spencer Collision are the sponsors for Friday's game, while Bugaboo Creek Steakhouse will sponsor Saturday's contest.  After this weekend, RIT plays nine straight games away from Ritter Arena and does not return home until Jan. 27-28 against Mercyhurst.

RIT (6-5-2, 5-3-2 AHA), who is 29-2-6 at home against AHA foes dating back to the start of the 2009-10 season, earned a split at Connecticut last weekend, losing 3-2 on Friday, while earning a 2-1 win on Saturday. Ben Lynch (Blaine, MN/Lincoln Stars) and Cameron Burt (Detroit, MI/) scored goals for the Tigers on Friday, as Connecticut scored two straight third period goals to break a 1-1 tie.  On Saturday, Jeff Smith (Spokane, WA/Tri-City Storm), who has missed the majority of the season due to injury, returned to score his first goal of the season, while Mark Cornacchia (Unionville, Ontario/) tallied the game-winner late in the second period.  Goaltender Shane Madolora (Salinas, CA/) did the rest, stopping 28 shots, including a breakaway on Cole Schneider with 1:56 left in regulation, as RIT hung on for the win.
 
American International (3-12-2, 2-7-2 AHA) enters the weekend looking to snap a four-game losing streak, all against AHA foes. Last weekend, the Yellow Jackets were swept at home by Air Force, losing 8-3 and 7-3. Jon Puskar leads the team in scoring with 13 points on five goals and eight assists. Steve Mele leads the squad with six goals, while Puskar and Michael Penny have a team-best eight assists. In goal, Ben Meisner has seen the majority of playing time, and is 3-9-2 with a 3.02 goals against average and .918 save percentage.  He also has two shutouts this season.
 
Tickets are available for Friday and Saturday's games at the Gordon Field House and Activities Center Box Office or by phone at (585) 475-4121. Fans can also purchase tickets via ticketmaster.com. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for RIT faculty, staff and alumni and $5 for students with ID. Fans can also buy special reserved seats in Section 100 or 101 for $13 (adults), $11 (faculty/staff/alumni) or $8 (students). Buying a reserved section ticket will guarantee you a seat for the game.

RIT is 17-3-1 all-time against the Yellow Jackets, including a 14-3-0 mark since moving to Division I in 2005.  RIT went 3-1 against American International last season with two shutouts.  The Tigers eliminated the Yellow Jackets in the 2011 AHA Quarterfinals and are 9-1-1 all-time against them at Ritter Arena.

Friday and Saturday's games will be aired live on Time Warner Cable Sports channel 26 or 1026 for high definition subscribers, with Gene Battaglia and John Ditullio bringing you the action. In addition, the game will be broadcast over the airwaves on WITR 89.7 FM and witr.rit.edu.  There will also be live stats.
 
Come out and support the Tigers as they continue their quest for the 2012 Atlantic Hockey Championship.