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DAN ORZECHOWSKI
Staff Writer
Fredonia’s men’s hockey team seized another point in SUNYAC conference standings after a 1-1 tie against Buffalo State on Saturday. The Blue Devils now sit in second place in conference play with three points.
Coming into the weekend, Buffalo State was ranked 12th in the nation. In the first of two back-to-back games, Fredonia quickly smashed Buffalo’s ranking after a 4-2 victory on Friday in Buffalo.
Head Coach Jeff Meredith praised the Blue Devils’ results this weekend.
“There’s nothing I would’ve like to seen the team do differently. We did a lot of things really well,” he said. “[Saturday’s] game was a really hard-fought battle. We saw some really gritty effort by our guys. That’s the way we have to play. We were the underdogs, and we had to be rabid.”
Early in the first period, Fredonia’s Marcus Ortiz found the net with the assistance of Samuel Wilbur and Jimmy Morgan. The lead was held until Buffalo matched the damage in the second period. Both teams clashed to establish a new lead in the final period, but the score remained the same. This led to a period of overtime, which had the same results.
This weekend’s performances brought Fredonia’s overall record to 1-1-1. Saturday’s tie was the first game of four consecutive home games for the Blue Devils.
More than satisfied with the conference standings, Meredith said that “gaining three points in the first weekend is huge. It puts us in a position where we don’t have to chase others. There are only 16 conference games, and it’s hard to get points back.”
On Friday, Nov. 11, the Blue Devils will host SUNY Potsdam in Steele Hall. According to Meredith, Friday’s game is one of the biggest games of the season.
“It’s the biggest game, because it’s the next one,” he said. Approaching one game at a time is important to the Blue Devil philosophy.
Friday is also the hockey team’s Stroke Awareness Night. The team will be wearing red digital camo jerseys to display their homage. A ceremonial puck drop will also take place before the game. So far, about $5,000 has been raised for the local chapter of the Stroke Foundation. A 50-50 raffle will continue to raise money on Friday.