RIT scored three goals in the first 21:09 against Hobart, and then jumped on the shoulders of netminder Tyler Euverman, who earned his ninth career shutout. Hobart mounted significant pressure in the third period, but the Statesmen couldn’t solve Euverman and lost by a score of 4-0.
RIT opened the scoring 6:48 into the game. Rob Vessio sent a low slapshot towards the net from the point. Erol McDonald was jostling for position in the slot and deflected the puck low into the corner of the net for the score.
“When [RIT} gets the puck moving around, and we follow the puck, we get in trouble,” said Hobart coach Mark Taylor.
Ten minutes later in the period, the Tigers struck again to build the lead to 2-0. Hobart attempted to carry the puck out of its own zone, but the breakout attempt failed. RIT changed the direction of the turnover near the blue line, and the Tigers wound up with a 2-on-1 rush at the Statesmen net. Mike Tucciarone took the pass from David Bagley and finished the chance for the score.
1:09 into the second period, the potent RIT offense struck again. This time, Jerry Galway sent a blistering slapshot from the point that cleanly beat Hobart netminder Adam Lavelle topside for the score.
However, that was it for the offense for either team. The last 39 minutes of the game were a goaltender duel.
Adam Lavelle shutdown the Tigers, stopping the final 27 shots that he faced in the contest. Lavelle fought the puck early in the game, but once he settled in he was stellar in net.
“Lavelle has been a workhorse for us all year,” said Taylor.
Euverman was equally stellar at the RIT end of the ice, particularly in the third period. Hobart put pressure on the RIT net, and Euverman was forced to make several quick saves to keep the goose-egg on the board.
“Ty played great,” said RIT coach Wayne Wilson. “Especially since it wasn’t a great game defensively as a team.”
The shutout was Euverman’s third of the season.
