ERIE, PA – Liam Kerins (Caledon, Ontario/North York Rangers) scored two goals, including the game-winner with 4:08 left in regulation, while Mike Rotolo (Rochester, NY/Cedar Rapids Roughriders) made 21 saves his first start in more than two months, as the No. 5 seed RIT men's hockey team (15-14-6) earned a hard-fought 2-1 win over fourth seed Mercyhurst (17-14-4) at the Mercyhurst Ice Center in game one of the Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinal series on Friday evening.

With the game tied at 1-1 late in the third period and teams skating 4-on-4, Kerins stripped a Mercyhurst player of the puck behind the net, walked out and roofed a backhander over the glove of goaltender Adam Carlson for his second goal of the game and 11th of the season.

RIT had to kill off a penalty not long after the goal. Mercyhurst pulled Carlson for the extra attacker for the final 24 seconds of the power-play, creating a 6-on-4, but the Tigers penalty-killing unit came up big. Rotolo made a huge save on a point blank chance by Jonathan Charbonneau with 1:30 left. Carlson remained out of the net for the final 1:17 and despite a late flurry in front of the RIT net in the final seconds, the Tigers hung on for the win.

Kerins, who deflected in a shot by Erik Brown (Keene, Ontario/Kemptville 73's) with 1:27 left in the second period, now has 11 goals on the season, including six tallies over his last six games. Rotolo, who missed the last 16 games due to injury (suffered at the Mercyhurst Ice Center on Jan. 3), was brilliant in goal, stopping a handful of odd-man rushes, while controlling his rebounds to earn his third straight win and fifth overall on the year.

Anthony Mastrodicasa scored the Mercyhurst goal, while Carlson made 29 saves in defeat. The loss snapped Mercyhurst's seven-game unbeaten streak.

RIT ran into penalty problems in the third period, as the Lakers had four power-plays, including a five minute major. Overall, Mercyhurst was 1-for-6 with the man-advantage, while RIT was 0-for-4. RIT held a 31-22 edge in shots.

"Overall it was a good win for us," said RIT head coach Wayne Wilson. "I really liked how we played over the first two periods, but was not satisfied with our discipline in the third. Thankfully our penalty-killing stepped up and won us the game. I thought getting Mike (Rotolo) back gave us a spark; he was real solid in goal."

After a slow first few minutes to start the game, RIT dominated play in the opening period, with several good chances, out-shooting the Lakers, 13-5, but neither team could find the back of the net.

Rotolo was tested about three minutes in, as he stood his ground to stop Derek Barach on a 2-on-1 odd-man rush from the right circle. Later in the period, he made a nice glove save on another 2-on-1 chance by Barach, this time from the left side.

The Tigers had several good chances over the opening 20 minutes, but could not get one past Carlson. Erik Brown (Keene, Ontario/Kemptville 73's) was robbed in front by Carlson midway through the opening period and on the same shift, Kerins fired a shot that Carlson stopped with the rebound laying loose in front. Valenzuela went for the puck, but had it knocked away by a Mercyhurst defender at the last second. With a few minutes left in the period, RIT caught the Lakers on a bad change and Brown was able to walk in, but his hard shot was smothered by Carlson.

RIT continued its strong play in the second period and were finally rewarded, as Kerins would get RIT on the board with 1:27 left in the second period, redirecting a shot from Brown through a maze of bodies and past Carlson for his 10th goal of the season. Chase Norrish (Strongfield, Saskatchewan/Yorkton Terriers) and Greg Amlong (O'Fallon, MO/UMass Lowell) kept the puck in at the point, while Amlong firing a shot that was blocked. Brown picked up the puck in the high slot and fired a shot that deflected off the stick of Kerins in the air as Valenzuela swatted at it in front, allowing it to get past Carlson.

Both goaltenders rose the occasion in the period, as each team had some good chances. Rotolo had to come up big on a nifty deflection by Charbonneau, then corral the rebound before it crossed the line. Later in the period, with Mercyhurst on a power-play, Rotolo made a great glove save on Charbonneau from point-blank range.

Moments after the first big save on Charbonneau, Josh Mitchell (Osoyoos, British Columbia/Alberni Valley Bulldogs) was sent in alone on a breakaway and tried to slip a backhand between the pads of Carlson, but somehow, the Mercyhurst goaltender kept the puck out of the net, falling to his back to make the save.

RIT had a great chance on a 4-on-3 power-play, as Alexander Kuqali (Pittsburgh, PA/Sioux City Musketeers) fed a pass to Valenzuela, whose one-timer was marked for the left side, but Carlson slid across to make the big pad save.

Todd Skirving (Thunder Bay, Ontario/Sioux Falls Stampede) made a great play to clear a puck that looked to be going in off the goal line later in the period, keeping the game scoreless.

Mastrodicasa tied the game at 1-1 on a 4-on-3 power-play with 9:58 left, firing a shot from the high slot through a screen after Mercyhurst won a draw in the offensive zone past a screened Rotolo.

Senior captain Josh Mitchell (Osoyoos, British Columbia/Alberni Valley Bulldogs) tied former teammates Brad McGowan (Langley, British Columbia/Surrey Eagles) and Adam Hartley by playing in his 150th career game this evening, most in school history.

The Tigers are 25-12 all-time in the postseason at the Division I level, including a 5-1 mark last season en route to winning the league title and advancing to the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship game. RIT is 12-4 all-time in Atlantic Hockey quarterfinal games and have won five straight Atlantic Hockey postseason contests.

Tonight was the fifth meeting between the two schools this season, as RIT holds a 3-2 lead. RIT won the first two meetings by scores of 4-2 and 7-3 on Jan 2-3, while the Lakers took a pair of one-goal games, 4-3 and 3-2 on Feb. 26-27. RIT leads the all-time series between the two schools, 36-20-6, including a 20-11-3 mark in the Division I era. Both teams were Division III rivals in the late 1980s and 1990s.

Game two of the series is on Saturday at 7:05 p.m.

"We will need to refocus and be prepared for tomorrow night," said Wilson.