Canton, NY – Vili-Jesper Koivula (Pinsiö, Finland) scored his team-leading third goal of the season but four unanswered scores gave visiting SUNY Cortland a 5-3 victory over the SUNY Canton men's hockey team on Saturday evening.
 
The Roos (1-1-0) got on the board first at 19:01 of the first 13 seconds into a 5-on-3 opportunity. David Hopfer (Tonawanda, NY) passed the puck from left to right to Kyle Dora (Saranac Lake, NY) and circled around Dora executing a give-and-go. Hopfer fired a shot from the top of the left circle that was initially saved by Red Dragon goaltender Chris Bastone. Kasey Kulcczycki (Laval, QUE) stood in the low slot and his rebound shot was also denied by Bastone. However, the second rebound went right to Josh Sova (Oswego, NY) waiting at the right post as he put home his first goal of the season. SUNY Canton held an 11-5 shots advantage in the opening period.
 
With six seconds remaining on a 4-on-4 Koivula scored his third goal in two nights. The freshman deked the goaltender and flipped a shot over the blocker to double the Roos lead 8:40 into the middle period.
 
Cortland (1-1-0) got one back at 13:46 of the second when Mike Crowley collected a loose puck out in front and found Dan Broderick behind the net. Broderick fed a quick pass to Darren McCormick at the left circle who rifled a shot inside the near post. Six seconds after their power play ended the Red Dragons knotted the score at two apiece. Crowley collected a loose puck at the near post and found McCormick behind the net. He played a quick one-time pass to Dougie Elgstam who sniped a quick shot inside the left post.
 
Cortland continued the flurry of second period goals with 1:24 remaining when Connor Beck checked the puck away from a Roo skater and found Andrew McCann who buried his first goal of the season for the 3-2 lead after two. The Red Dragons held a 14-8 advantage in shots in the middle frame.
 
The visitors opened up a two goal advantage at 2:20 of the third on the power play as McCann netted his second straight goal off passes from Wilson Vershay and Stefano Alonzi. The Roos responded three and a half minutes later when Ben Beasley (Burlington, ON lit the lamp for the first time on the season off passes from J.P. Langlois (Amos, QC) and Tyler Bullard (Ballston Spa, NY).
 
The Red Dragons added a crucial insurance goal with 4:19 remaining on a Roos turnover at their blue line. Broderick found the back of the net off passes from Drazen Zack and Crowley.
 
Michael Cerasuolo ((Montreal, QC) made 22 saves for the Roos, while Bastone turned aside 24 shots for Cortland.
 
The Roos are back in action next Saturday when they visit Plattsburgh State at 7 p.m. Stay up to date with the latest news directly from the SUNY Canton Athletics department by "liking" us on Facebook and "following" our Twitter, Instagram and YouTube accounts.
 
About SUNY Canton
SUNY Canton is Northern New York's premier college for career-driven bachelor's degrees, associate degrees and certificate programs. The college delivers quality hands-on programs in engineering technology, health, management and public service. Faculty members are noted for their professional real-world experience in addition to outstanding academic credentials. SUNY Canton OnLine offers hundreds of flexible and convenient courses, as well as 10 exclusively online bachelor's degrees. The college's 15 athletic teams compete as members of the NCAA Division III and the USCAA.