ROCHESTER, NY – For the second straight, the RIT men's hockey team (12-20-1, 12-15-0 Atlantic Hockey) fell on home ice, 3-2 to visiting Air Force (21-8-5, 18-5-3 Atlantic Hockey) in front of 3,221 fans at the Gene Polisseni Center Saturday night.
 
Before the game, RIT honored seniors Caleb Cameron (Sundridge, Ontario/Listowel Cyclones), Michael Holland (Rye, NH/Chicago Steel), Garrett McMullen (Churchville, NY/Trail Smoke Eaters), Alex Perron-Fontaine (St. Mathieu de Beloeil, Quebec/Chilliwack Chiefs), Rotolo, Todd Skirving (Thunder Bay, Ontario/Sioux Falls Stampede), and Danny Smith (Edmonton, Alberta/Sherwood Park Crusaders).
 
McMullen and Liam Kerins (Caledon, Ontario/North York Rangers) scored for the Tigers, who remain in eight place in the Atlantic Hockey standings. In goal, Mike Rotolo (Rochester, NY/Cedar Rapids Roughriders) stopped 28 of 31 shots.
 
Kyle Haak led the No. 19 Falcons with a goal and an assist, while Jordan Himley and Trevor Stone also scored. Shane Starrett picked up his 20th win of the season, stopping 18 shots.
 
Air Force out-shot RIT, 31-20. The Falcons were 1-for-6 with the man-advantage, while RIT was 1-for-4.
 
Just like last night, Air Force would take an early lead on the first shot of the game, as Haak would strip a RIT defenseman of the puck inside the Tiger zone, come in all alone on Rotolo and roof a backhander just under the crossbar and in for his 11th goal of the season, just 1:14 in.
 
Rotolo would be called upon to make some big saves later in the period, as Air Force would fire nine of the first 10 shots of the game on goal.
 
Shawn Cameron (Sherbrooke, Quebec/Cumberland Grads) had RIT's best chance of the period, grabbing a loose puck at the Air Force blueline, while cutting to the middle, before having it taken of his stick at the last second.
 
RIT would answer just 13 seconds into the second period on the power-play, right off the opening faceoff, as Ryan Kruper (Sherwood Park, Alberta/Sherwood Park Crusaders) dug the puck out of the Air Force corner, right to Myles Powell (Courtenay, British Columbia/Cowichan Valley Capitals), who found Kerins streaking towards the net. Kerins would take the pass in front and rip a wrist shot over the glove of Starrett for his 11th goal of the season.
 
Air Force would regain the lead with 9:26 left in the period, as Haak and Matt Serratore cycled behind the net. Serratore fired a pass of Himley's skate that Rotolo stopped, but Himley was able to pick up the rebound and score his 16th goal of the season.
 
The Falcons would open the third period on the power-play and would get the important third goal, 1:33 into the period, as Johnny Hrabovsky would collect the puck from Starrett behind his own net and go the length of the ice before flipping a perfect feed to Stone, who fired the puck in for his fifth goal of the season.
 
RIT would try to mount a comeback, as McMullen would get his first goal of the season with 7:10 left in regulation, going to the net and having a point shot by Brody Valette (High River, Alberta/Whitecourt Wolverines) deflect off him and in to cut the Air Force lead to 3-2. Jordan Peacock (Burlington, Ontario/Burlington Cougars) also assisted on the goal.

Tonight's contest was the fourth and final regular season meeting between the two schools this season. Air Force won the first two meetings earlier in the season at Cadet Ice Arena in Colorado Springs, by identical 4-3 scores on Nov. 11-12. Last night, Even Giesler scored a hat-trick for the Falcons, including the game-winning goal midway through the third period in a 4-2 Air Force win.
 
Air Force holds a 27-20-4 edge in the all-time series, including a 25-17-4 mark since RIT moved to Division I in 2005.
 
RIT wraps the 2016-17 regular season next Saturday, Feb. 25 at Atlantic Hockey foe Mercyhurst University. Game time from the Mercyhurst Ice Center is 7:05 p.m.