“We played very hard and tough as a team last week, although we came up short in both games,” said junior Brett Evans.

Middlebury tallied six goals in the first half, including four by senior Mike Stone, to take an early lead. Stone, along with classmate Tom Petty, notched a total of three goals by 12:50 of the first quarter, pulling the Panthers ahead 3-0. Rensselaer freshman Austin Ray netted his sixth of the year at 5:37 to bring the Red Hawks within two before adding one more in the second quarter. The Panthers responded with three more goals, as Evans and junior Paul Cerone scored for RPI to end the half down 6-4.

Although Cerone was able to put RPI on the board twice in the second half with a goal in each of the third and fourth quarters, the Panthers responded with four additional goals to bring the final score to 11-6, Middlebury.

Leading the way for the Panthers was Stone, who netted six goals on the day, while senior Schuyler Hopkins added a goal and an assist. For Rensselaer, Cerone had a team-high three goals, as Ray added two more and sophomore Nick Billy notched two helpers on the day. Senior goaltender Ryan DeJordy and sophomore Angelo Luppino combined for a total of nine saves, and Middlebury senior goalkeeper Pete Britt stopped 13 shots he faced.

“In the game against Middlebury, we were right in it to the end, even though they are one of the top teams in the nation,” said Evans.

The Red Hawks were scheduled to play against the SUNY Cobleskill Fighting Tigers on Thursday; however, the game was postponed to Monday, April 27, due to a lack of officials. The game, which will be played on Harkness Field, has yet to have a start time scheduled.

Saturday fared no better for RPI, as they dropped an 8-7 contest to the Swarthmore College Garnets in two overtime periods. Ray netted the equalizer with 13 ticks remaining in regulation play, but the Red Hawks were unable to convert in the two extra sessions before Garnet junior Gavin Musynske capitalized on a great play to take the lead and eventual win.

“We played great team defense; however, we didn’t capitalize on some man-up opportunities which kept Swarthmore in the game,” explained Evans. “The outcome might have been different if we had a few of our big impact players off the disabled list, but that is not an excuse for not coming out with a win.”

Evans netted the first goal of the game at 13:19 of the opening quarter, before Swarthmore tallied three straight for the two-goal lead. Rensselaer freshman Andrew Miller added one more at the end of the quarter to pull the Red Hawks within one, followed by a goal from classmate Brian Larkin to tie the game at three at 1:40 of the second quarter. The Garnets were able to net one more goal to take a 4-3 lead entering the half.

Stepping up once again for the Red Hawks, Evans notched the only two goals of the third quarter to bring RPI up, 5-4. The lead was short-lived, however, as Swarthmore freshman Max Hubbard added three straight goals to take a 7-5 advantage. RPI rallied twice in the final 44 seconds of play to force overtime. Although the first overtime session remained scoreless, Musynske’s 14th of the year proved to be the game-winner, as the Garnets finished the evening with a 8-7 victory.

Swarthmore junior goaltender Kevin Friedenberg finished with 11 saves to bring the Garnets to 5-5 overall, while DeJordy ended the day with nine stops as the Red Hawks dropped to 5-6.

Rensselaer returns home this Saturday in a match against the St. Lawrence University Saints, with the opening face-off beginning at 1 pm. Last season, the Saints knocked the Red Hawks out of the Liberty League playoffs after just one game. “I believe the team will recharge and have a great game plan heading into Saturday,” said Evans. “We’ve been waiting for this chance at redemption against the team that cut our season short last year.”