Late Goal Against Ramapo Nets 2-1 Weekend

The Cortland Red Dragons kicked off the 2011 part of their season in Feasterville, PA over the weekend. The All-Star Event had Cortland matched up against Loyola at 7 AM Saturday morning. The Red Dragons had beaten the Greyhounds 10-1 in the Pre-Season Event earlier in the season. However, this regular season match up would be much more even. Loyola jumped out to a 2-0 lead against an exhausted Cortland squad. The score would stay the same until Cortland found their energy at the end of the first period. Harris Barton scored at the 10:35 mark of the period and then Gary Krupa scored two goals one minute apart from each other to make it 3-2 Cortland at the end of the first. Cortland carried that momentum into the second period when Nick Boffoli scored 8 seconds into the period. Chris Poplarski netted a power play goal and Tommy Farr also found the back of the net in the second to end the period in favor of

Cortland 6-2. A carefully played third period saw the Red Dragons net four more goals (Farr, Poplarski, Barton (2)). Cortland fired 33 shots on the Loyola goaltender while Loyola had 32 shots on goalie Lou Vetri who came away with his fourth win of the season. Cortland ended their first game of the weekend with a 10-6 win. Cortland's stars of the game were: #1 Harris Barton (3 G, 1 A) and #3 Gary Krupa (2 G, 1 A).

The second game of the day came 15 hours after the Loyola game, 10 P.M. against 7-0 Scranton. Cortland once again came out sluggish and gave

up the first goal 1:36 into the game. However, Chris Poplarski fired one past the Scranton goaltender 57 seconds later. Scranton scored two more goals in the period before Bob Motto, fresh off his four game suspension, netted a goal on a play set up by Al Grogan and Tommy Farr. Cortland's momentum continued into the second period and scored two power play goals in the first four minutes of the period by Harris Barton and Mike Barbariantz to take the lead 4-3. Momentum shifted quickly and the Red Dragons saw their lead disappear in a span of 26 seconds by two goals from the scrappy Royals. Before the 2nd period ended, Al Grogan tickled the twine to tie the game up going into the second intermission. In the third period, the two teams traded power play goals early on and then Scranton turned on the jets and took the game from Cortland. They scored four more goals in the game, two of them coming from the man advantage, and took the nightcap 10-6.

Cortland netminder Ross Midgen fended off 26 out of Scranton's 36 shots. With four out of Scranton's ten goals coming on the power play, Cortland needed to play more disciplined against Ramapo on Sunday morning.

Discipline would be key against the Roadrunner's since they lost their last game on a last second no goal call against Oswego. In the process of losing to the Laker's, Ramapo also lost their two coaches due to suspension. This boded well for the Red Dragon's on Sunday morning. However, they once again gave up the first goal of the game on the power play. Cortland battled back and saw Chris Poplarski score a minute and a half later. The play shifted back towards Ramapo when they scored their second goal of the period. Bob Motto then scored his second goal of the season to take the Red Dragon's into

the break, tied at two goals apiece. Cortland continued momentum into the second period and scored two quick goals by Brendan Joyce and Chris Poplarski to put them up 4-2. A short handed goal by Ramapo made it 4-3 but Cortland quickly turned the tides when Gary Krupa scored on the power play. Two more goals by Ramapo

before the end of the period left the score tied at five and led the way for an exciting finish. Joyce scored his second goal of the game three minutes into the period to take the lead 6-5 which would last until the clock showed 1:52 remaining in the game, when Ramapo knotted it back up. Cortland battled right back and took the lead once again 15 seconds later when Al Grogan won the face-off to Tommy Farr who carried the puck down the boards and threw a pass to Grogan in front of the net who hammered it home. 7-6 Cortland 1:37 remaining. Ramapo then took a time out and pulled their goalie and scored the game tying goal with twenty seconds left in the game. Cortland then took a time out to regain their composure and put out Poplarski, Krupa, Farr, and Joyce to try and score one more goal. A face-off win by Joyce brought the puck back to Krupa who fired a pass to Poplarski who carried it down the rink and took a shot from the bottom of the circles past the Roadrunner's goalie to take the lead once more with 13 seconds on the clock. The following face-off was won by Ramapo and they had time for only one shot which was batted away by Cortland goalie Ross

Midgen to seal the win for Cortland 8-7 in thrilling fashion. Cortland's star of the game was #3 Brendan Joyce (2 G).

The win made Cortland 2-1 on the weekend, shooting them into sole possession of 4th place in the ECRHA's Division III with a 5-4 (10 points) record on the season. Through 9 games, Tommy Farr leads the team with 18 points (10 G, 8 A), followed by Gary Krupa with 17 points (6 G, 11 A), Chris Poplarski with 14 points (9 G, 5 A), Brendan Joyce with 12 points (5 G, 7 A), and rounding out the top five is Harris Barton with 9 points (5 G, 4 A). With games remaining against UMass-Amherst (7-2), Lehigh (4-5), and Oswego (3-5-1), Cortland has a chance to sneak into 3rd place overall. The last regular season set of games will be played in Glastonbury, CT the weekend of February 18th.

Over the weekend, the ECRHA's annual All-Star game was played. Representing Cortland in the DIII game was Gary Krupa and Tommy Farr. The fast paced, non-defensive game saw 21 goals scored. Tommy Farr scored in the first period on a pass from Queens College's Thomas Esposito. Gary Krupa assisted on a goal to Ramapo's Paul Cantanzaro and also netted one for himself in the third period. The game ended a 10-10 tie which called for a shoot out. Tommy

Farr shot second for his team and was robbed by the UMass goalie. A Scranton player scored the game winning goal and Krupa and Farr's side lost. On a side note, Tommy Farr's younger brother Billy Farr, was the lone representative from Oswego. They had one, one on one with each other and Tommy tried to toe drag around Billy but was stopped by the freshman. The Farr's will match up in Glastonbury in a few weeks as well as the Barbariantz', as Mike's younger brother Tyler plays for Oswego as well.

Cortland is amped up for the chance to come in 3rd place and will take the upcoming four week break in stride. The playoffs are right around the corner and the Red Dragon's are stepping their game up at the right time. Their record against ECRHA teams is 4-2, losing only to Queens and Scranton, the two undefeated teams in the league.

Krupa and Farr to Represent Cortland in DIII All-Star Game

Gary Krupa and Tommy Farr have been chosen to represent Cortland in the ECRHA's annual All-Star game on Saturday, January 22, 2011 at 2 P.M. Krupa and Farr were selected by the presidents of the other DIII teams.

Gary Krupa (Port Jefferson, NY) is a junior rookie on Cortland. His solid defensive play has led to his All-Star game selection. He is second on the team in points with 11 points. He leads the team and is 5th in the league in assists with 8. Gary also has 3 goals on the season. Krupa's strong play has proved that he is a force to be reckoned with on defense. He has shown his hard shot from the point and precision passing on the rink. Opposing teams have trouble getting past Krupa.

Tommy Farr (Washingtonville, NY) is a junior on Cortland. This is his third straight All-Star game selection. Farr has captained the team since the 2009-2010 season. He currently leads the team in points with 13, goals with 8, and power play goals with 2. He has shown that he can put pucks in the net and start plays from the defensive zone. Tommy has a knack for keeping the puck in the offensive zone and firing shots on net from all angles.

The All-Star game is a time to make relationships with other players in the league and play a fun showcase game. Check back over the weekend to see how Krupa and Farr faired in the game and to see how Cortland's games are shaping up against Loyola, Scranton, and Ramapo. Full All-Star rosters can be found at http://ecrha.net/article.php?article_id=54655 . Congratulations and good luck to Gary and Tommy and the rest of the DIII All-Stars!

Second Half Set to Kick Off with All-Star Weekend

The Cortland Red Dragons' schedule has been set for the ECRHA's annual All-Star weekend event on January 22-23.

January 22 7 A.M.- Loyola

January 22 10 P.M.- Scranton

January 23 10 A.M- Ramapo

Cortland will start off the second semester with an early 7 A.M. game against Loyola (1-4-1). The long mid day break is something new for the Red Dragons who will need to be as rested as possible when they take on first place Scranton (6-0) at 10 P.M. The mid day break will be a time when the DIII All-Star game will be played at 2 P.M. The rosters have not been released yet but each team will have at least one player represent them. The final game of the weekend will be played at 10 A.M. against Ramapo (4-2). Cortland will look to play the same game they did against the Roadrunners in the pre-season event when they shut them down and won 8-1.

The 3-3 Cortland squad is eager and amped up to start play after a long cold winter break. With 6 teams left to play, it will be a fight to the finish to gain a high playoff seed. Check back Wednesday to see which of your Red Dragons will be selected to the DIII All-Star game!

Cortland at .500 After Going 2-1 on Long Island

The Red Dragons took their talents to Old Bethpage, NY over the weekend. They were looking to move up in the standings and they started their quest with game one against Syracuse. The puck dropped at 7 A.M. The two teams came out sluggish as they struggled with a scoreless tie until Nick Boffoli put one behind the Orangemen netminder at 9:44 in the first. However, 'Cuse knotted it back up 26 seconds later. Cortland quickly regained composure as Tommy Farr picked up a loose puck in the neutral zone and maneuvered his way around a defender and lifted the puck over the goalies shoulder. The first period came to a close with Cortland up 2-1. The second period saw just one goal on the power play on a shot by Farr which deflected off a Syracuse defenders leg into the net. It was assisted by Brendan Joyce. The Red Dragons finally woke up in the third period and they did not waste much time doing so. A carry-over power play saw Farr notch his third goal of the game from the point on a pass from Mike Weber. The goals began to come at a quick pace for the remainder of the period. Nick Boffoli scored his second of the game at the 1:50 mark of theperiod on a pass from rookie Gary Krupa. There were four more goals scored by the Red Dragons in the game (Monks, Krupa, Grogan, and Glynn). Rookie Al Grogan scored his first career goal at the 6:33 mark of the 3rd. Cortland started off the weekend with a 9-1 win. Cortland gathered all three stars of the game: #1- Tommy Farr (3 G, 1 A), #2- Nick Boffoli (2 G, 1 A), and #3 Lou Vetri (1 GA, 15 SVS, .93 SPCT).

The second game of the day for Cortland was against new powerhouse Queens College. The 4-0

Queens team had their sights set high for the game as they quickly jumped out to a 1-0 lead at

the 0:15 mark. Cortland saw three more goals slip past goaltender Ross Midgen in the first period. Two more quick goals from the Knights in the second period caused Cortland to take a timeout. After the timeout the Red Dragons scored two goals in two minutes (Brendan Joyce and Cory Monks). The score stood at 6-2 at the end of the period with momentum on Cortland's side. This momentum was quickly taken away from Cortland at the 3:16 mark of the third period as Queens scored their 7th goal of the game. The Red Dragons could not over come a four goal deficit in the first period and lost the game 8-2.

The third and final game of the weekend and the first semester was against rival Ithaca College. The "Cortaca" roller hockey series was in Cortland's favor as they skated to a 10-0 win last season. They looked to continue this trend. Cortland came out firing at all angles scoring 5 goals on 12 shots in the first period (Grogan, Monks, Farr, Barbariantz, and Glynn). Ithaca started out the second period strong, pressuring the Cortland squad and scoring first. However, the Red Dragons quickly turned the tides and scoredtwo goals in 25 seconds by Joyce and Farr. Sean Glynn notched his second goal of the game later on in the period by dancing around the Ithaca goalie who dove for the puck and left Glynn with an open net. Ithaca scored one more goal in the period. The Red Dragons laid back in the third period and that led to two more Ithaca goals. The ferocious Bombers squad fought until the final buzzer sounded but Cortland hung on to win the "Cortaca" game 8-4 and take a 2-0 lead in the series. Cortland once again gathered all three stars of the game: #1- Tommy Farr (2 G, 2 A), #2- Brendan Joyce (1 G, 2 A), #3- Al Grogan (1 G, 2 A).

The weekend was one of the best in Cortland's history going 2-1 for only the second time in their short 3 year existence. The weekend saw Cortland score 19 goals, the record for goals in a 3 game weekend. Points were at a premium this weekend as the Red Dragons had some players with high point totals: Tommy Farr- 8 points (5 G, 3 A), Brendan Joyce- 6 points (2 G, 4 A), Gary Krupa- 5 points (1 G, 4 A), Al Grogan- 4 points (2 G, 2 A), Nick Boffoli- 3 points (2 G, 1 A), Sean Glynn- 3 points (3 G), Cory Monks- 3 points (3 G), Mike Weber- 2 points (2 A), and Mike Barbariantz- 1 points (1 G). This 2010-2011 squad has scoring power that has never been seen by the State University before. With 35 goals in 6 games this season, Cortland has almost evened their total from last years 40 goal output.

As the first semester schedule takes a pause for the winter break things are looking up for the

Red Dragons as they now stand in 5th place in Division III with a 3-3 record for 6 points. Cortland has 6 games remaining on their schedule before playoffs (Loyola, Scranton, Lehigh, Oswego, Ramapo, and UMass- Amherst). Cortland players are showing up in the league leaders in many different categories. Tommy Farr is tied for 9th in points with 13, tied for 5th in goals with 8, and tied for 1st in star points with 11. Gary Krupa is tied for 5th in assists with 8. Sean Glynn is tied for 4th in game winning goals with 2. Harris Barton leads the league in penalty minutes with 30. Rookies Krupa, Grogan, Weber, and Monks are improving their game every time they step on to the surface. They have brought leadership and a skill set to the team that no one could have envisioned during the tryout period. Krupa stands in second on the team in points with 11 and first in assists with 8.

On a side note, Harris Barton has completed his 3 game suspension and is now eligible to play in the next game and Bob Motto still has one game left on his 4 game suspension. Things are looking up for the Red Dragons as they are looking forward to the 2011 semester of play. Check back over the break for schedule updates and all-star announcements. Have a safe and happy holiday season!

Cortland Struggles Against PCRHL

The opening weekend of the 2010-2011 regular season started on November 6th. Cortland faced the PCRHL's best team, St. Joseph's. The game started off in favor of the Red Dragons as they were out to a 3-1 lead at the end of the first period. However, in the second period the momentum swung in favor of the Hawks as they climbed back into the game scoring three goals, one on the power play and one short handed. The tides took a turn for the worst as Cortland was shut down and shut out in the third period. St. Joseph's scored four goals in the final period to take the win 8-5. With penalties once again hindering the Red Dragons as theydid last year, the Hawks took their power play to the surface and scored three power play goals. Scorers for Cortland were: Chris Poplarski (2G, 1A), Gary Krupa (1G, 2A), Sean Glynn (1G), Mike Weber (1G), and Harris Barton (1A). Cortland's stars of the game were:#2- Chris Poplarski, and #3- Gary Krupa.

The second game of the day pitted Cortland against Villanova. A shake up of lines certainly brought a scoring power to the team. It took a while for the Red Dragons to awake from their afternoon game slumber, but they did in a big way scoring four unanswered goals in the first period, two in eight seconds, shutting out Villanova. However, a lack of defense in the second allowed the Wildcats to climb back into the game. This was also due to the physical play Villanova put on. The Cortland squad took an assortment of penalties, leading to only one power play goal in the period. The Red Dragons battled through and took a 6-4 lead into the third. They came out strong in the final stanza scoring two goals in three minutes. Once again, penalties proved to be costly as Cortland took three allowing two power play goals. The Red Dragons held tight to a close lead as the slipped away with an 8-6 win. Scorers were: Tommy Farr (2G, 1A), Mike Barbariantz (1G, 2A), Chris Poplarski (3A), Brendan Joyce (1G, 1A), Gary Krupa (1G, 1A), Sean Glynn (1G), Harris Barton (1G), and Nick Boffoli (1G). Cortland had one star of the game: #2- Tommy Farr.

The final game of the weekend was played against Drexel. If the previous games of the weekend

were any indication on how this game would turn out, Cortland would have to stay out of the penalty box. This proved to be the tallest task of the game for the talented Red Dragon squad.

They let the refereeing get to them from the start of the game. A bench minor for too many men on the ice caused Drexel's first goal of the game. Cortland battled back to make the score a 2-1 deficit at the end of the first off a shot by Tommy Farr that snuck by the netminder. A Brendan Joyce Unsportsmanlike Conduct penalty carried over into the second period and Drexel capitalized by netting their second power play goal of the game. The two teams battled until Chris Poplarski scored a short handed goal at the 10:28 mark. That one goal deficit was erased by Drexel's third power play goal of the game coming 22 seconds after Poplarski's short handed goal. This sent Drexel into a 4-2 lead at the intermission. With time and man power of the essence, the Red Dragons lapsed into their old way of gathering up penalties. In the span of 36 seconds Cortland gathered 41 penalty minutes one minute into the

third period. Tommy Farr received a Slashing penalty, Chris Poplarski received a High Sticking penalty, Harris Barton received a Roughing penalty, a Game Misconduct, and a Game Ejection, and Bob Motto received an Intent to Injure penalty, and a Match penalty resulting in a Game Disqualification. This left Cortland two defensemen short and on a four on two penalty kill for five minutes. Miraculously they killed off this five minute four on two and didn't allow Drexel to net another goal for the remainder of the game. A goal was scored by rookie defenseman Mike Weber on a pass from Tommy Farr after the teams were back to even strength. With Ross Midgen pulled from the net so Cortland could be with an extra attacker, they pounded the Drexel goaltender with a flurry of shots but it was to no avail. Weber hit the post while the goalie was down with three seconds left and that sealed the win for Drexel. The Red Dragons skated away with a 4-3 defeat. Scorers for Cortland were: Tommy Farr (1G, 1A), Chris Poplarski (1G), Mike Weber (1G), and Gary Krupa (1A). Cortland's star of the game was: #1- Tommy Farr.

After the first weekend of play, Cortland finds themselves with a 1-2 record for a total of 2 points. This leaves them tied for 5th in the standings with four other teams. Chris Poplarski led the team in scoring with 7 points on the weekend, continuing where he left off

last season. Gary Krupa led rookies in scoring with 6 points on the weekend, showing that the talent level of the Red Dragons has improved tremendously since last season. Penalties certainly hindered the teams progress as they could not get anything done a man or two short most of the time.

Heading into their next set of games Cortland will be without Harris Barton (3 games) and Bob Motto (4 games) for their actions in the Drexel game. The Red Dragons will be playing in Old Bethpage, NY at Skatesafe America on November 20th and 21st. They will face Syracuse at 7 A.M. on the 20th and Queens College at 1 P.M. on the 20th as well. They will finish off the weekend against rival Ithaca College at 1 P.M. on Sunday the 21st. Stay tuned for how the Cortland squad fares in their next set of games.

Regular Season Event- Feasterville Schedule Announced

The Red Dragons will be traveling to Feasterville, PA once again to kick off their regular season campaign on November 6th and 7th. Cortland will have great time slots this time around. The schedule is as follows:

Nov 6- 3 P.M.- St. Joe's

Nov 6- 7 P.M.- Villanova

Nov 7- 10 A.M- Drexel

These three teams are part of the PCRHL (Philadelphia Collegiate Roller Hockey League). The first three games for each ECRHA D-III team will be played against a PCRHL team as the ECRHA had a light merger with them. However, these six new teams in the PCRHL Conference will not be a part of the playoff picture although the games will count toward each ECRHA team's record.

The quest for the ECRHA D-III Championship begins in just over a week. Stay tuned for updates over the weekend.

Pre-Season: Feasterville, PA

The Cortland Red Dragons traveled to Feasterville, PA over Columbus Day Weekend. Cortland had one of the toughest schedules to play. They played good teams and early in the morning.

The first game was played against perennial powerhouse Loyola. The Red Dragons came out firing at all angles. They took a 5-0 lead into the first intermission. Cortland slowed a bit in the second giving up 3 goals. The final score of the game was 10-3 in favor of Cortland. Goal scorers were: Barton (3), Barbariantz (2), Farr (2), Joyce, Poplarski, and Krupa. Cortland gained all 3 stars of the game: 1st- Harris Barton, 2nd- Mike Barbariantz, 3rd- Chris Poplarski. Netminder Lou Vetri played a great game allowing only 3 goals on 27 shots for the win.

Coming off a strong first game the squad was eager to start their second game against a hard-nosed Ramapo team. The game started off very evenly matched although Cortland took a 3-0 lead into the break. The play became a bit chippy during the second period. A Ramapo player had gotten a 5 minute boarding penalty and subsequently a game disqualification. Cortland took advantage of this mishap and played solid defense down the stretch to take the win 8-1. Goal scorers were: Boffoli (2), Glynn, Barbariantz, Joyce, Farr, Motto, and Weber. Once again Cortland gathered all 3 stars of the game: 1st- Ross Midgen, 2nd- Nick Boffoli, 3rd- Tommy Farr. Ross Midgen was the first ever goalie in Cortland history to gain first star of the game. He played outstanding making 24 saves on 25 shots.

A great first two games carried over to the first period of the Scranton game. Cortland held a 4-1 lead after the first period. However, penalties were the Red Dragons downside. A lack of defense in the second period didn't help either as they saw a 4-1 lead vanish to a 7-6 deficit by the end of the second. Brendan Joyce scored the game tying goal in the third to seal the tie 7-7. Goal scorers were: Joyce (2), Monks (2), Poplarski, Weber, and Farr. Brendan Joyce was named 3rd star of the game.

Rookies Al Grogan, Mike Weber, Gary Krupa, and Cory Monks made a solid impact on the team over the weekend. Weber led all rookies in pre-season with 4 points (2 G, 2A) while Monks had 3 points (2 G, 1 A), Grogan had 2 points (2 A), and Krupa had 1 point (1 G).

The regular season starts on November 6th back in Feasterville. Cortland finished tied for second with Oswego with 5 points at the end of the weekend.

Cortland Gearing Up For Pre-Season

The Cortland Red Dragons have endured five weeks of try-outs and practices and now are one week from the start of the ECRHA season. After the try-out process ended the Red Dragons selected four new rookie players. Al Grogan (F), Mike Weber (D), Cory Monks (F), and Gary Krupa (D) all stood out during the selection process and secured their spots on the team. Practices have been battles for line positioning with 100% effort every time the players have stepped onto the rink.

The ECRHA D-III consists of Cortland, Loyola, Ramapo, Scranton, Ithaca, U-Mass Amherst, Syracuse, and new comers Oswego, Queens, and Lehigh. With the most teams ever in D-III this season is shaping up to be the most competetive yet.

Cortland will look to right the ship after their 1-8-3 2009-2010 season starting next weekend in pre-season. The schedule has been set for Cortland and they will play their usual set of early morning games.

October 9- 8A.M. vs Loyola College

October 9- 5P.M. vs Ramapo College

October 10- 7A.M. vs Scranton University

Cortland's sights are set high for the upcoming season with the fresh new talent of players taking their place on the team.

2010-2011 Roster Announced

The roster for the new season has been announced upon completion of the tryouts.

2-F-Sean Glynn

6-D-Harris Barton

11-F- Chris Poplarski

13-F-Bryan Buchalski

14-D-Mike Barbariantz

17-F- Brendan Joyce

18-D-Bob Motto

19-D-Gary Krupa

22-F-Cory Monks

23-F-Tommy Farr

27-D-Nick Boffoli

29-D-Mike Weber

30-G-Ross Midgen

33-G- Lou Vetri

96-F- Al Grogan

Looking forward to a great season with a high talent level. See you on the rink.

Interest Meeting Announced

Cortland Roller Hockey will be having an interest meeting on Tuesday, September 7th at 8:30p.m at Poolside in Park Center. Please be on time for this meeting. We will discuss tryout dates and times, practice info, and our league. If you're interested come to the meeting!

Looking forward to a great season!

Fire and Brimstone (An ECRHA Season Recap on SUNY Cortland)

By Ian Prescott; Northeastern University

Dragons Trying to Paint The Town Red

Cortland's 2009-2010 followed the cliche of close and no cigar, often this Red Dragon team found itself neck and neck with most teams late into 3rd period but more often than not a blown lead or an early deficit made it impossible for this young Cortland team to defeat the top tier DIII teams when it mattered. However with an incoming class the Dragons will be looking to fly high again in 2010-2011

The Good

Team President Tommy Farr had a productive season that led to his nomination to the DIII all-star game, his 9 goals and 4 assists in 10 games was enough to lead his team, however the SUNY squad had no shortage of scorers with Chris Poplarski and Brendan Joyce who both also had over 10 points in 10 games. A balance necessary to build upon if they are to jump up the standings this fall.

The Bad

The top three aforementioned scorers seemed to be the only goal scoring that Cortland was able to muster; beyond the 25 goals from the top 3 scorers the rest of the team was only able to produce 15 goals, bringing the total goals for output to 40 goals, which was second to last only 10 goals more than last place Ithaca. The incoming class of players will need to have a real knack for scoring to assist with Cortland's triumvirate of Poplarski, Joyce and Farr

The Ugly

Three goaltenders played games for Cortland last season splitting 17 games between Ross Midgen, Lou Vetri, and Bryan Bulchalski. In those 17 games the majority of the work went to Midgen and Bulchalski who both had goals against averages very close to 6.00 and save percentages lower than .810 which is not good enough for a team averaging about 3.33 goals a game.

The Outlook

"We definitely need to step up in our leadership. Also we need to find lines that click, we didn't find the right combination of players that played well together until the time playoffs rolled around. We will certainly be practicing more come next season. We have some great talent coming in as well." -Tommy Farr

To see this article please go to http://ecrha.net/article.php?article_id=54453 . Thanks to Ian Prescott of Northeastern University for a job well done on our season recap as well as all the other ECRHA teams.

Roller Hockey Takes Home "Most Improved"

On Sunday May 9th, 2010 the SUNY Cortland Recreational Sports Department held their annual end of the year banquet. At the banquet the Roller Hockey Club received the honor of "Most Improved Sport Club". This honor has been awarded to Roller Hockey in recognition of significant improvement in performance, organization, and administration of the club.

This is a great honor for the club and we will continue to improve in every aspect.

(Shown above: President Tommy Farr (left) and Secretary Bryan Buchalski (right))

Looking Forward to the 2010-2011 Season

The Cortland Club Roller Hockey Team is looking forward to the new season in October. The team is currently looking for new incoming freshmen and transfer students to tryout for the 2010-2011 team in September. If interested in trying out please contact President Tommy Farr at thomas.farr@cortland.edu.

Please note that if you plan of trying out that our practice location is off-campus and outdoors. It is highly suggested that you have outdoor wheels and and stick.
Looking forward to next season with high hopes on the horizon. Please check back at the beginning of the Fall semester for tryout and meeting dates.

Have a great summer!

Cortland Knocked Out of Playoffs in Pool Play

The ECRHA's annual playoffs were held in Feasterville, PA over the weekend. Cortland's seventh place finish placed them in a pool with second seeded Loyola, fourth seeded Delaware, and sixth seeded UMass- Amherst.

The Red Dragons played the Loyola Greyhounds on Friday night at 11:40. The squad was eager to avenge their 7-6 loss to Loyola earlier in the season. The Greyhounds took an early 2-0 lead at the end of the first period. The second period had eight goals, four by Cortland and four by Loyola. The Red Dragons could never muster up that one extra goal to tie up the game and give themselves momentum going forward. The third period saw Cortland start out quickly with a goal fifteen seconds into the period. However, three unanswered goals by Loyola proved to be too much for Cortland. They lost in the first game 10-7. Top Scorers: Miguel Valle- 1 G/3A, Chris Poplarski- 2 G/1 A, Brendan Joyce- 1G/ 2A, Tommy Farr- 2G, Nick Boffoli- 1 G, Sean Glynn- 1A.

The second game against Delaware started out sluggish with Delaware taking a 2-0 lead but Cortland battled back with 2 goals by Tommy Farr in the span of 11 seconds. Delaware scored agian at the end of the period to make the score 3-2 at the end of the first. The second period saw two more early power play goals by Delaware, however, Chris Poplarski scored twice while Delaware netted one more at the end of the period. Another power play goal in the third by Delaware and a goal by Farr and Poplarski made the score 7-6 in favor of Delaware with 2 minutes to go in the contest. Delaware controlled the puck for the remainder of the game and the Red Dragons could not get another shot off. The second game ended in a 7-6 loss.

The third game of pool play was a must win game for both Cortland and UMass- Amherst. UMass came out intense and physical and took a 5-0 lead into the second period. Two back to back goals by Cortland (Valle, Farr) proved to have no momentum behind them. UMass scored three more goals in the game to take the 8-2 win and advance to the elimination round. The Cortland Red Dragons lost their final game of the season.

Cortland ended their seson on a nine game losing streak. Penalties and lack of momentum hindered the Red Dragons ability to win. The goal and points leader for the season was Tommy Farr with 19 goals and 3 assists for 22 points. The assist leader was Brendan Joyce with 11. The additions of Chris Poplarski, Brendan Joyce, and Dan Titterton certianly improved the team but the league had also improved considerably. Congradulations to the Northeastern University Huskies who beat the Scranton Royals 10-4 to win the Division Three Championship.

Regular Season: Glastonbury, CT February 20th and 21st

The Red Dragons took their second five hour trip of the season to Glastonbury, CT over the weekend. Cortland's overall record at the Z-Rink (3-1-2) brought confidence to this set of games. The UMass- Amherst Minutemen was the first game of the weekend. Lou Vetri started the game in net and made 28 saves on 36 shots. Down 3-1 at the end of the first period, the Red Dragon squad crawled back in the second period to shorten the deficit to 5-4 by the end of the period. The third period saw UMass score two power-play goals and one even strength goal. Cortland dropped the first game 8-4. Chris Poplarski and Tommy Farr had 2 goals each while Brendan Joyce tallied 3 assists.

Confidence was down starting the second game. Cortland faced the Ramapo College Roadrunners and if the pre-season game (12-4 Cortland) between the two teams would be an indicator of the outcome this should have been a victory. Cortland controlled the first period of the game however, they trailed 2-1 after the period with the goal coming with 14 seconds left by Tommy Farr off a rebound. Ramapo came out strong in the second stanza scoring one power-play goal and one even strength goal putting the Red Dragons down 4-1 going into the third. Ramapo went up 5-1 four minutes into the third and nothing clicked the rest of the way for the Red Dragons. Nick Boffoli tallied a goal with four minutes remaining in the game but it was not enough. Cortland lost 5-2.

The final game of the weekend was a rematch of an earlier game in the year against the first place Northeastern University Huskies (10-0-1). Cortland managed a 3-3 tie in the first meeting. However, 37 shots on goaltender Ross Midgen would be too much for the Red Dragons to handle. Max Duncan, the top ranked netminder in the league, shut out Cortland as they took 23 shots on net. 6-0 loss.

The Red Dragons head into the playoffs on March 5th as the 7th seeded team in the ECRHA. They will play the second seed Loyola, third seed Delaware, and the sixth seed UMass-Amherst in their round robin pool. A third place or better finish in the pool with qualify the Red Dragons for the quarterfinals. The regular season is over as Cortland begins to prepare for their playoff run.

Regular Season: Feasterville, PA January 23rd and 24th, 2010

The Cortland Red Dragons traveled to Feasterville over the weekend to continue their season. Their first game was against the defending Division Three Champion Scranton Royals. Cortland gave up a goal one minute into the contest. However, the Red Dragons battled back and Mike Barbariantz scored a power play goal with the assist going to Chris Poplarski. The period ended 2-1 in favor of the Royals. The second period saw just one goal by Scranton. Nick Boffoli netted his first goal of the year in the third period. Penalties once again hindered the Red Dragons play making abilities. Goaltender Ross Midgen kept the team in the game by making 17 saves on 22 shots. Cortland lost 5-2.

The following game was a tough test for Cortland when they played the first of two games against the Delaware Fighting Blue Hens. Cortland played strong defense for the majority of the first period until Delaware got two quick goals in the final minute of the period. The second period started well for the Red Dragons scoring two goals in the first two minutes from Chris Poplarski and Tommy Farr. With the game knotted up at two the Blue Hens stepped up their offensive play making ability netting three goals in a row until Poplarski scored his second goal on a slap shot from the point. However with fatigue setting in, Cortland couldn't step up to the overpowering Delaware team. A three goal third sealed a second straight loss- 8-3.

With Saturday's two loss day in the rear view, Cortland played Delaware for the second time. A goal was scored by Tommy Farr assisted by Bob Motto three and a half minutes into the game. Two goals were the scored by Delaware putting the Red Dragons down 2-1 at the end of the first. Shut-down defense and great goaltending by Lou Vetri only saw the Hens net one goal in the second stanza while Brendan Joyce scored one of his own for Cortland. With the Hens leading 3-2 going into the third period Cortland stepped up their offensive abilities as Chris Poplarski scored one minute into the period to knot it up at three. Two goals in a row by Delaware left for an exciting finish. With a power play opportunity Cortland controlled the zone and a crisp pass by Joyce found Miguel Valle's stick who knocked it home to pull the Dragons even closer. Another power play with one minute left in the game called for Vetri to be pulled for an extra attacker. The 5 on 3 power play saw great puck movement and a shot by Farr was kicked out to the front of the net by the Blue Hen net minder which found the stick of Joyce who scored the tying goal with 22 seconds left in the game. A 5-5 tie increased Cortland's confidence going into the fourth and final game of the weekend. Cortland's stars of the game: #2 Brendan Joyce, #3 Tommy Farr.

With a come from behind tie, momentum was on Cortland's side when they faced Loyola. Three goals (Barbariantz, Farr, Poplarski) in five minutes is just what the Red Dragons needed to bolster their confidence to an even higher level. With a three goal lead, Loyola battled back to make it 3-2 at the end of the first. Two power play goals and one even strength goal by Cortland put them up 6-2 in the middle of the second period. Loyola netted one in the second. With the score in the Red Dragons favor going into the third, the team let up two quick goals. The game was tied at six going into the final minutes of the hard fought game. After a Loyola time-out, Cortland was quick to rush the puck into their offensive zone and tally 3 quick shots. However, an odd-man rush and a slick move by a Loyola forward saw the puck slide right into the back of the net with 1:01 left on the clock. Cortland fired shots from all angles but it was to no avail. The Cortland Red Dragons lost 7-6.

Cortland now finds themselves with a 1-3-3 record and in seventh place. They will certainly need to pick up their play for their last set of games if they plan to make a run at the division crown.

Tommy Farr was selected by the ECRHA to represent Cortland in the D-III All-Star game against the "B" Division All-Stars.

Cortland vs Scranton

Cortland vs Scranton - 10/10/09 from ECRHA Gameday on Vimeo.

Cortland Red Dragons Player Bio's

Click on the link to the right to read about your favorite players!
www.cortlandrollerbio.blogspot.com

Regular Season: Glastonbury, CT October 31, November1, 2009

The regular season opener was held in Glastonbury, CT. A 5 hour trip for the Cortland team. Game one "Cortaca". Ithaca, a newly formed team in the ECRHA, was not taken lightly by the Red Dragons. Cortland came out strong with a goal by Farr 0:34 into the game and a goal by Nick Boffoli 1 minute later. The first period ended with a 4-0 lead in Cortland's favor. The second period saw more of the same with 2 goals by Barbariantz and a goal by Barton. The third period was the icing on the cake with 2 shorthanded goals by Poplarski and Valle. Cortland rolled to a 10-0 win and preserved the shutout for Vetri. Cortland's stars of the game: #1 Tommy Farr, #2 Mike Barbariantz, #3 Brendan Joyce

The Red Dragons next contest was against another new team of the ECRHA, University of Massachusetts Minutemen. The game saw 18 minutes of penalties taken by Cortland. Shorthanded was Poplarski's calling to do damage. Chris had 3 shorthanded goals and 1 even strength goal. Midgen, with strong goaltending, and Poplarski, with playmaking abilities, kept the Red Dragons in the game. Cortland yeilded 33 shots agianst Midgen who made 28 saves. The penalties hindered the Red Dragons who struggled to a 5-5 tie. Cortland's star of the game: #1 Chris Poplarski

The final game of the weekend was Sunday morning at 8 A.M. against the Northeastern University Huskies. The squad took the early wake up call and ran with it. The line of Farr and Joyce provided all the scoring. Joyce scored 0:10 into the game on an assist from Farr. The next goal came 15 seconds later from Farr on a pass from Joyce. Their third goal was scored by Farr 2:46 into the game. The first period ended 3-0 in favor of the Red Dragons. Cortland then laid back, stopped pressuring the puck and took bad penalties. The second period saw Northeastern climb back from a 3-0 deficit to a 3-3 tie. In the third period the two teams stepped up their defense and allowed no more goals. However, a Husky power play at the end of the game called Midgen to make several mind blowing saves to preserve the 3-3 tie. Cortland's stars of the game: #1 Tommy Farr, #2 Brendan Joyce

The Cortland Red Dragons finished the weekend with a 1-0-2 record.

Pre-Season: Feasterville, PA October 10th and 11th, 2009

Preseason was a good starting point for Cortland. Their first game pitted them against the defending DIII ECRHA champions, Scranton Royals. Cortland finished 0-2 against the Royals last season. The first goal was scored shorthanded by Bob Motto 1:47 into the contest. Another shorthanded goal was scored by Chris Poplarski 6 minutes later. The first period ended in Cortland's favor 3-1. Scranton scored 3 goals in 3 minutes to start the second period. The Red Dragons battled back with goals by Bob Motto and Harris Barton. A hard fought third period by Cortland saw 2 more goals by Poplarski, 1 goal from Barton, and 1 by Lou Vetri. A late goal scored by the Royals left for an exciting finish. Goalie Ross Midgen faced a flurry of hard shots and made some spectacular saves to preserve the win for Cortland. The Red Dragons ended the game with an 8-7 victory. Cortland's stars of the game: #1- Chris Poplarski, #3- Harris Barton

The second game of the day for the Red Dragons was against the newly formed Ramapo College Roadrunners. Cortland came out lazy and allowed the first goal of the game 3 minutes into the contest. However, that was enough for Cortland to realize they needed to play shut down defense. Allowing only 10 shots the entire game on goaltender Bryan Buchalski. Goals were scored by Tommy Farr (3), Sean Glynn (3), Poplarski (2), Miguel Valle (1), Barton (1), and Lou Vetri (2). Stellar defense was played by the pairings of Barton and Barbariantz, Dan Rocklein and Vetri, and Motto and Dan Titterton. The Red Dragons ended the game with a 12-4 victory. Cortland's stars of the game: #1- Tommy Farr, #2 Sean Glynn, #3 Chris Poplarski

The third and final game of the weekend proved to be a struggle for a very winded Cortland team. They were up against the Temple University Owls "B" team. The game started slowly for the Red Dragons. They were down 2-1 at the end of the first period with the only goal being scored on the power play by Poplarski from Glynn. The second period saw 2 goals scored by Tommy Farr which knotted up the game 3-3 at the end of the 2nd period. The tie lasted until 3:07 left in the game when a goal was scored by Temple to put the game away. Netminder Lou Vetri played great allowing only 4 goals on 40 shots. A lackluster game was played by Cortland Sunday morning at 11A.M. 4-3 loss. Cortland's stars of the game: #1- Tommy Farr