With classes starting on Wednesday at SUNY Cortland, the second half of the season is just five days away. The ECRHA's annual All-Star Event Weekend kicks off on Saturday morning with Cortland playing the first game of the weekend against rival Lehigh at 6 A.M. The last time these two teams met in Pottstown, PA two months ago, the Red Dragons ripped the Hawks 11-2. After the early morning affair with the Hawks the Cortland squad will take a rest until their 2 P.M. game against the Loyola Greyhounds. Cortland beat the 'Hounds 14-3 with seven skaters in Pottstown in their last meeting. The Dragons will receive a much needed 17 hour break after the Loyola game before facing off against a scrappy Ramapo team. The final game of the weekend will be against the Syracuse Orange at 12 noon Sunday. Cortland beat the Orange 10-0 in the first game of the season back in October.
Along with the four games for the Cortland squad, three players will have an extra game over the weekend. Goalie Lou Vetri (Smithtown, NY), forward CJ Gilcrist (Monroe, NY), and forward Tommy Farr (Washingtonville, NY), have all been selected for the ECRHA's Division III vs Division B's All-Star Game. Each Cortland player has been named as a starter for the team along with Oswego's Billy Farr and Syracuse's Jared Bly.
Vetri has been D-III's best goalie all season allowing just 7 goals against in six games. Lou leads the league in wins (4), goals against average (1.75), and save percentage (.885). Vetri has taken over as an assistant captain this season. Off the ice he has also taken over as President of the club. In Vetri's fourth year in the league, he has certainly proven to the team and the league that he is one of the toughest goalie to score on. With Vetri playing the best hockey of his career, he is looks to keep carrying the Red Dragons for the remainder of the season and into playoffs. This is Lou's first All-Star Selection.
CJ Gilcrist has come to Cortland and taken the league by storm. He currently leads D-III in points (29), tied for first in goals (16), tied for first in assists (13), and leads in star points (12). Gilcrist has been on fire in the last four games notching 24 points. He looks to carry over his hot streak to the second half of the semester and into playoffs. This is CJ's first All-Star Selection, in his rookie year.
Tommy Farr has made his fourth consecutive All-Star Game. Last year in the All-Star Game Farr notched a goal en route to a shootout loss for his team. This year Tommy has 12 points including 4 power play goals, good enough for first in the league. Farr is currently 18 points off from the elusive century mark. He looks to captain the team to an undefeated season for the first time in school history.
Check out the entire D-III All-Star roster here: http://ecrha.net/article.php?article_id=54989
Along with the All-Star Game comes the skills competition. The skills competition has made it back to the ECRHA by way of fastest skater and 3-0 challenge. This year Cortland has 4 participants in the contests. Freshman Tom Hughes will participate in the fastest skater contest, his first match up will be against Corey Bauman of UMass. Hughes will have to beat four other competitors in order to be crowned fastest in the ECRHA.
Gary Krupa and freshman Chris Fidotta will be with a team of two other skaters and a goalie in the 3-0 breakaway challenge. Lou Vetri is also playing goalie for the contest. Krupa will be paired with Matt Mendolia of Queens College, Pat Rosa of Hofstra, and goalie Zak Back of UConn. Fidotta will be paired with Brian Pershinsky of Binghamton, Scott Kalbfleish of Temple, and goalie Max Sparr of UMass. Goalie Lou Vetri will be with the skating tandem of Rob Lerro of Northeastern, Matt Lester of Ramapo, and Jared Pollet of Rhode Island.
Who will win if Krupa or Fidotta's teams are paired up against Vetri? Should be interesting!
Check out all of the Skills Competition players and match ups here: http://ecrha.net/article.php?article_id=54990
Good luck to all Red Dragons in the All-Star Game and skills competition this weekend! Don't forget to keep up with all of the Cortland games on www.ecrha.net! Also be sure to follow the ECRHA on Twitter at their handle @ECRHAHockey as they are sure to post updates throughout the weekend on all games, divisions, All-Stars, and skills competition.
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