ROCHESTER, NY – A Liam Kerins (Caledon, Ontario/North York Rangers) hat-trick was more than enough as the RIT men's hockey team opened the 2015-16 season with a 9-1 victory in an exhibition contest against the University of Ontario Institute of Technology in front of 2,630 fans at the Gene Polisseni Center on Saturday night.
 
Kerins scored once in the first period and twice in the second for his three goal night. Greg Amlong (O'Fallon, MO/UMass Lowell) added a goal and led the team with three assists for a four-point night. Alexander Kuqali (Pittsburgh, PA/Sioux City Musketeers) scored a goal and added an assist. Myles Powell (Courtenay, British Columbia/Cowichan Valley Capitals), Brady Norrish (Strongfield, Saskatchewan/Yorkton Terriers), Chase Norrish (Strongfield, Saskatchewan/Yorkton Terriers) and Garrett McMullen (Churchville, NY/Trail Smoke Eaters) also added goals to complete the scoring.
 
Todd Skirving (Thunder Bay, Ontario/Sioux Falls Stampede) and Max Mikowski (Cheekotwaga, NY/Buffalo Jr. Sabres) each had two assists, and Brad Shumway (Lafayette, CO/Chicago Steel), Gabe Valenzula, Abbott Girduckis (Belleville, Ontario/Wellington Dukes), and Michael Holland (Cambridge, MA/Chicago Steel) each recorded an assist for the Tigers, who are coming into the 2015-16 season after a 20-win season, and their second trip to the NCAA Tournament, where they became the first 16 seed to defeat a top-ranked team.
 
Mike Rotolo (Rochester, NY/Cedar Rapids Roughriders) picked up the decision, stopping all 18 shots he faced in 40 minutes of play. Christian Short (Vaughan, Ontario/Surrey Eagles) picked up the slack, stopping six out of seven shots on goal in the third.
 
For UOIT, Alex Derlis scored the lone goal in the third period, with Ben Blasko and James Woodcroft getting the assist. Brendan O'Neill stopped 28 shots in the loss.
 
The Tigers outshot the Ridgebacks 46-25. They also converted on their special teams opportunities, going 4-for-8 on the power-play, and held UOIT to 1-for-6 with the man-advantage.
 
The early-arriving crowd did not have to wait long to get the goal barrage started. Just 1:22 in the game, Kerins took advantage of a UOIT turnover, slapping a shot from the left face-off circle past O'Neill, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
 
Midway through the first, Amlong rocketed a shot on a power-play from the point, a shot that Chase Norrish (Strongfield, Saskatchewan/Yorkton Terriers) deflected from in front the 2-0 advantage.
 
Kerins' second goal came just 8:03 into the second period, on the power play, off a one-timer from Mitchell as Kerins sank the shot just inside the right post.
 
Kerins finished the hat-trick later in the period, by taking advantage of another Ridgeback turnover. This time, Valenzuela received the puck and fed it to a streaking Kerins who converted on the opportunity.
 
The offense was more than enough for Rotolo, who managed to use every limb to preserve the shutout through the first two periods. The most dangerous moment for RIT came in the second period, in which Rotolo managed to stop four shots in a row, as a scrum descended in front of the net.
 
The Ridgebacks finally got on the board in the third period, as they took advantage seven seconds into the five-on-three power play.  Derlis received the puck from Ben Blasko right in the faceoff circle and went top-shelf for the goal.
 
RIT took advantage of a power-play time late in the third period, as Kuqali, Amlong, and Powell tallied in a span of 5:23 to put the game away.
 
"I liked the way everybody contributed tonight," said RIT men's hockey head coach Wayne Wilson. "We've got a few things to clean up on, so we will hit the film room and get after it next week."
 
The Tigers will begin their regular season on the road, as they take on ECAC foes Clarkson and St. Lawrence Friday and Saturday, respectively.  Both games will begin at 7 p.m.