The Red Dragons’ Pete Glass scored his fourth goal of the game with just seven seconds remaining in the game’s final quarter. Oneonta’s Tyler Dunne gained possession straight off the faceoff and sprinted through the RPI defense, before dropping the ball to Glass for the game winner.

Glass’ game-winner came just seven seconds after senior Adam LoGiudice knotted the score at six, negating a determined last-minute comeback by the Red Hawks. Rensselaer erased a two-goal deficit in the last minute of the fourth quarter with goals from senior attacker Peter Rice and LoGiudice.

“It was a tough day all around,” Rensselaer Head Coach Tom Korrie said. “We played a lot of defense.”

That will happen when one team dominates the faceoff circle, and that’s exactly what the Red Dragons did Saturday. Oneonta won 13 of 17 faceoffs in the contest and slowed the pace of the game for much of the first half.

But Korrie did not fault sophomore faceoff man Jordan Quellman.

“It’s not just the guy on the X,” Korrie said. “The other guys have to get to the groundballs.”

Despite yielding most of the possessions to the Red Dragons, the RPI defense was stout. RPI successfully cleared their zone 21 of 22 times and junior goaltender Ryan Michels made five saves on 12 shots; an impressive mark in the first game for a completely new starting defensive unit, including freshman Dave Cardella.

“Our defense is our strength right now,” Korrie said. “Ryan’s leadership is so valuable. He is calm, cool, and intense, makes great saves, and does a great job directing the clear. We will need him to be big every game.”

While RPI’s young defense played well, the Red Hawks’ experienced offense struggled. RPI took 31 shots, only got 18 on net, and missed multiple opportunities from just five or 10 yards out.

“They had an average goaltender, but we made him look like an All-American,” Korrie said of Oneonta goaltender Brian Tricoles, who finished the game with 12 saves. “There were several times we just shot it into the goalie or just missed the cage. We have to stick those.”

Rensselaer did get production from their big guns: LoGiudice, a preseason All-American selection in the midfield, tallied three points for RPI while Rice netted two scores in the loss. Senior midfielder Chris Sherman added a goal for Rensselaer, concluding a solid day for RPI’s top offensive line. LoGiudice led the Red Hawks with 30 goals, 40 points, 130 shots, and 55 groundballs and was named to the Liberty League First Team.

The same could not be said for the second line of midfielders: Josh Begley, PJ McComb, and Mike Sampson. The trio combined for no points in the game and managed just six shots.

“They have to find a way to put the ball in the cage,” Korrie said. “We have to have a balanced offense and they are a big part of that.”

Korrie will also be looking for some instant offense from a few freshmen, most notably midfielders Josh Secora and Ryan Bigham. Secora was an All-American in his home state of Colorado, and according to Korrie, has the hardest shot on the team.

If RPI is to survive its tough pre-conference and Liberty League schedules, it will have to improve in a hurry. RPI will face multiple nationally ranked top-10 teams in Middlebury and Ithaca and will also have to find a way to knock off Skidmore and St. Lawrence.

“There are no easy games ahead for us,” Korrie said. “If we want to win we will have to play smarter.”

The translation: better shot selection, improvement in the faceoff circle, better execution on offense, and patience.

“I don’t think we have hit our stride yet, no one has,” Korrie said. “But we have to learn to adjust, that’s part of playing smart.”