The Stony Brook hockey team travelled to Athens, Ohio to take on the Ohio Bobcats for the first time since 2017 this weekend. Though the Bobcats were ranked two spots lower in the national rankings, they managed to stifle the Seawolves’ offense and come away with a series sweep.
In both games, the Bobcats built early leads that the Seawolves were unable to recover from. Ohio scored the first two goals of the night in game one on Friday, February 7th. Junior defenseman Brendan Pepe cut the lead in half in the second period, but another Ohio goal made it 3-1 at the second intermission.
Stony Brook continued to fight back, however, beginning with freshman defenseman Robert Distefano’s first goal as a Seawolf which made it a one-goal game. Junior forward Chuckie Peck found the back of the net on a power play to tie the score at 3-3 and force overtime, but the comeback would end there. Despite dominating possession for most of the extra frame, the Bobcats scored on the rush and earned a 4-3 overtime win.
Ohio’s momentum carried over into game two on Saturday, February 8th. The Seawolves were held off the scoresheet through the first two-and-a-half periods, during which the Bobcats built a 3-0 lead. Sophomore forward Dustin Rinaldo ended the shutout bid with 8:17 left in regulation time, but the 3-1 score went unchanged through the remainder of regulation time.
Stony Brook turns its attention to this weekend when the team hosts the Syracuse Orange in an ESCHL Semifinal rematch. Saturday, February 15th will be the first ever Hockey Is For Everyone night, when we will celebrate inclusion in the game of hockey. Saturday’s game will begin at 8:30 p.m. and game two will be on Sunday, February 16th at 3:30 p.m. All home games are played at The Rinx: 660 Terry Road, Hauppauge, NY 11788.
