Men's Hockey | 1/15/2020 3:08:00 PM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - RIT heads cross country to take on host Arizona State in Tempe, Ariz. for a pair of games, Friday (9:05 PM EST) and Saturday (9:05 PM EST). The Tigers earned a split with No. 13 UMass-Lowell at home last weekend while the Sun Devils moved up a spot to No. 14 in this week's USCHO.com poll following a pair of victories at Brown, Saturday and Sunday.
FOLLOW LIVE
This week's games can be heard on WITR 89.7 FM and Fox Sports 1280 AM with Ed Trefzger and Scott Biggar on the call. Fans can also listen online at witr.rit.edu or foxsports1280.iheart.com. Free live streams of both games will be available on the
Pac-12 Network while Saturday's game will also be streamed on
Facebook Live. Live statistics for all games can be found at RITathletics.com while updates can also be found on Twitter by following @RITMHKY and/or @RITathletics.
TIGER TRACKS
Freshman goalie
Kolby Matthews (Coquitlam, British Columbia/Coquitlam Express) made 26 saves in his first collegiate start to backstop the Tigers to a 3-2 victory over No. 13 UMass-Lowell last Saturday at the Polisseni Center. Freshman forward
Caleb Moretz (Fairbanks, AK/Flin Flon Bombers) scored off a feed from junior forward
Jake Hamacher (Corona, CA/Dubuque Fighting Saints) with 7:42 left in the first period before the River Hawks answered 43 seconds later. Senior
Shawn Cameron (Sherbrooke, Quebec/Cumberland Grads) scored on a short re-direct with 8:28 left in the third period before freshman forward
Andrew Rinaldi (Pierrefonds, Quebec/Wellington Dukes) scored what proved to be the game-winner with 3:01 on the clock. Cameron also scored the previous evening, but it was UMass-Lowell riding a 3-0 third-period run to a 6-4 victory in the opener.
PUT THE WHISTLE AWAY
RIT was called for a season-low two penalties and four PIM during Saturday's victory over UMass-Lowell and marked only the second time in 12 games the Tigers finished with fewer penalties than their opponents. The squad currently ranks sixth nationally averaging 15.1 penalty minutes per game.
PULLING RANK
RIT is facing its second-straight and fourth nationally ranked opponent of the season in Arizona State. The Tigers earned a 3-2 overtime victory opposite then No. 17 Bowling Green (Oct. 11) in their second game of the season, before falling to then No. 12 Ohio State, 3-1, the following day in the championship game of the Ice Breaker Tournament in Toledo.
NON-CONFERENCE, NO PROBLEM
RIT closes the non-conference portion of the 2019-20 slate this weekend at Arizona State. The Tigers have already compiled their highest non-league win total since moving to the Division I level in 2006-07, while their 4-2-0 record guarantees at least a .500 finish for the first time.
GET STRAIGHT TO THE POINT
RIT is tied for 15th nationally with 65 goals as well as 178 total points this season. The Tigers are also tied for 21st in the country with 11 goals scored in the opening five minutes of games, turning nine of those contests into victories. RIT is 7-2-2 when leading after the first period.
YOUNG GUNS
RIT is currently tied for seventh nationally with 19 goals scored by first-year players, while the Tigers are also tied for 10th with 38 goals scored by underclassmen. Sophomore forward
Will Calverley (Scarborough, Ontario/Chilliwack Chiefs) is tied for the team lead with 16 points as well as nine goals, while freshman forward
Caleb Moretz (Fairbanks, AK/Flin Flon Bombers) is RIT's top rookie scorer with 14 points on seven goals and seven assists.
SPREAD THE LOVE
Seventeen Tigers have scored at least one goal this season while 23 have notched at least one point. Senior forward
Shawn Cameron (Sherbrooke, Quebec/Cumberland Grads), sophomore forward
Will Calverley (Scarborough, Ontario/Chilliwack Chiefs) and freshman forward
Andrew Rinaldi (Pierrefonds, Quebec/Wellington Dukes) share the team lead with nine goals apiece. Senior defenseman
Adam Brubacher (Elmira, Ontario/Powell River Kings) is tops with 11 assists, followed by junior forward
Jake Hamacher's (Corona, CA/Dubuque Fighting Saints) 10.
