Coming into the tournament as the lowest seed, the RPI hockey team was facing an uphill battle. Knowing that they’d have to win against Dartmouth to even stay in the tourney, the Engineers really turned up the heat. The team played with passion since the four-game series against Dartmouth and Vermont. Having gone to almost every game since then, I can say that the team looked much better during the home stretch than I have ever seen them play.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the upbeat style of play that RPI used to go 11-3-1 in the past two months. The high-energy play can be credited to all the players and coaches. I’ve especially liked watching Matt Murley feed Carson Butterwick or Marc Cavosie to score a goal after a huge Nathan Marsters save. The talent on the ice has exceeded my expectations for a college team, and I was very impressed with the performance in the postseason.
As the fifth seed of ten, RPI showed that they were horridly underrated. In a best of three series against Princeton, the Engineers showed the home crowd their winning ways, steamrolling the Tigers 5-3 and 6-0. Marsters was brilliant all weekend, especially in the shutout win leading into the ECAC tourney.
Facing a play-in game against Dartmouth, RPI knew what they had to do. Lead by their defense, they held the Big Green to only one goal, elevating themselves to a 2-1 victory and a chance to stun the first-seeded Cornell. Not many people picked the underdog Engineers to startle the Big Red, and Cornell proved worthy of their number one seed. They shut out RPI on the shoulders of goalie Matt Underhill, although RPI looked strong all game. Amazingly, the Engineers played full-speed against Clarkson, coming behind from a 3-1 deficit to stun the second seeded Golden Knights 4-3.
The tournament was a good way to cap off a season of ups and downs. The consolation game against Clarkson was much like the season was for the Engineers. Although they stumbled out of the blocks, they came back strong and finished with a flair.
I’d like to thank the team for a wonderful year, and I hope that there will be more seasons played with this much heart in the future.
