RIT Preview

Last Night

Clarkson 4, Niagara 3 (OT)

Matt Beca scored with 43.4 seconds left in overtime to end a strange game. Clarkson dominated the game in the first 10 minutes, scoring 3 minutes, 30 seconds in on a goal from Tim Marks. But the Golden Knights couldn't get a second goal past Niagara's Adam Avramenko. The Purple Eagles took a 2-1 lead in the second period, dominating play, only to see Clarkson score twice in 38 seconds on goals from Adam Pawlich and Bryan Rufenach to take a 3-2 lead. Niagara tied the game with a breakaway goal from Sam Goodwin in the third. Niagara outshot the Golden Knights 37-34, but Clarkson had a 15-7 edge in the third period and overtime. Neither team scored on the power play. Niagara had three chances and Clarkson two.

St. Lawrence 3, RIT 1

The Tigers have taken 74 shots on goal this season and scored just three times. Last night RIT had a 43-20 edge on SLU, but lost 3-1. The Tigers outshot the Saints 23-5 in the third period but only beat Saints goalie Robby Moss once, on a goal from Adam Hartley in the first period. RPI's Cameron Burt had the most frustrating night, taking eight shots with no points.

Clarkson Coach George Roll on RIT

"I thought they played very well against us last year and outshot us. Overall they had the better of the play, but (goalie Paul Karpowich) had an outstanding game. They are awfully agressive in all areas of the ice, especially on their penalty kill. They are the type of team you have to match their work ethic. They will bring it and put a lot of pucks on net."

Stat of the Night

Neither of these teams has had much success on the power play so far this season. Clarkson is 2 of 17 (11.8 percent) in its first three games and the Tigers are 0 of 8 after two games.

Who to Watch

Clarkson: As mentioned above, sophomore goalie Paul Karpowich played well against the Tigers last year, even if his save percentage stat was only .897. He made 35 saves and gave up four goals in a 6-4 win. Junior Brandon DeFazio has three career assists against RIT. Senior Matt Beca, who has a three-game, goal-scoring streak, has one goal and one assist. Senior Tim Marks and Junior Lauri Tuohimaa also have goals against the Tigers. Junior Scott Freeman has two career assists.

RIT:Tyler Brenner and Stevan Matic are the only two players on RIT's roster with career goals against the Golden Knights. Taylor McReynolds, Brent Alexin, Tyler Mazzei and Dan Ringwald all have assists against Clarkson. None of the Tiger goalies have faced Clarkson.

Last Meeting

Clarkson played its first game at RIT's Ritter Arena since the Tigers became an NCAA Division I program last season and came away with a wild 6-4 win. RIT led 2-0 after the first period, but Clarkson dominated the second, outscoring RIT 4-1 to take a 4-3 lead into the third. The Golden Knights added two more goals in the third and won despite being outshot 39-25.

Stats and Notes

Clarkson has won six straight games against RIT and is 2-0 against the Tigers in Cheel Arena. The Golden Knights have a 9-2-1 overall recodr against the Tigers and their last loss to RIT came in 1986 in a game played in Syracuse. RIT's last win in Potsdam over Clarkson was a 5-4 overtime victory at Walker Arena on Oct. 26, 1985. ... Although he is 3-0 against RIT since they became a Division I program, Clarkson coach George Roll actually has a losing record against the Tigers. Prior to arriving at Clarkson Roll coached NCAA Division III SUNY Oswego, and went 4-9-1 against the Tigers at that level. ... RIT head coach Wayne Wilson was a teammate of Roll's at Bowling Green. ... Clarkson is a minus-three in special teams this season. That stat counts power-play goals and subtracts opposing power-play goals. ... Clarkson has scored first in two of its three games this season. Last year Clarkson scored first 19 times and went 9-5-5. When the opposing team scored first a year ago the Golden Knights were just 1-14-2.