The RPI men’s hockey team managed only 25 shots in two games over the weekend, scored once, lost twice by a combined score of 11-1, and dropped their overall record to 9-19-4, and 4-11-3 in conference play.

The weekend began in Colgate for RPI, a team the Engineers had defeated soundly to win the Governor’s Cup a few months back. Unfortunately for the Engineers, however, this game would be different.

The Raiders ripped 10 shots off Mathias Lange in the 1st period alone, more than RPI would manage all night, and netted one to take the lead going into first intermission.

In the second period, the Colgate Raiders upped the ante, firing on Lange 12 more times, and burying a pair at 6:11 and 18:50 respectively. Colgate senior goaltender Mark Dekanich saved the four shots that came his way, and carried a 3-0 shut out into the 3rd period. And as bad as the game was going for RPI up to that point, it never seemed to get any better in the last stanza.

RPI’s offense was anemic in the third period, managing only two shots, both of which were saved by Dekanich, and the Raiders’ Tom Riley scored a fourth and final goal to put RPI away for the night.

Neither team converted any power plays, but Colgate put 30 shots on net, with Lange saving 26.

Saturday night could have been a night of redemption for the Engineers, as they traveled to take on the Cornell Big Red, but instead it became a night the Engineers would rather soon forget.

Continuing the tradition they began on Friday, the Engineers struggled on offense, with the Big Red making eight shots on net before RPI’s first.

Cornell’s Tyler Mugford and Michael Kennedy scored for the Big Red in the 1st period, and RPI would not answer until 13:21 in the 2nd period, when Tyler Helfrich scored on a power play. But by this time, the Engineers were down 4-0, the Big Red having scored at 3:42 and 11:14 of the 2nd. RPI could not muster any more offense the rest of the game.

But the Big Red kept coming. Just three minutes after Helfrich got RPI on the board, Cornell’s Taylor Davenport beat Alford for the 5th score of the night, and then in the third, Doug Krantz capitalized on two power play opportunities to cap the scoring at seven.

Jordan Alford allowed all seven goals against the Big Red attack, despite making 25 saves, while his counterpart, Ben Scrivens, allowed just the one.

RPI’s defense allowed 30 plus shots on net for the second straight game, being out shot at nearly a two to one ratio.

With the loss, the men have now dropped 14 of their last 16 games, and are tied for last place in the ECAC along with Dartmouth and Brown.

RPI returns to action next weekend on Friday and Saturday night against St. Lawrence and Clarkson. Both games begin at 7pm. Saturday night versus Clarkson is Senior Appreciation Night.