By Skye Tulio
Sports Assignment Editor
The hockey team (1-0) opened its 2012-2013 season with a win against Cornell (0-1) last Friday. The Bonnies host Binghamton (3-1) tonight at 8:30 in their home opener at the William O. Recreation Center in Olean.
The Binghamton Bearcats are one of nine teams the Bonnies face in the Northeast Collegiate League (NECHL), a subdivision of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA). Others include Cortland, Ithaca, Oswego, Syracuse and Cornell.
This season, the NECHL added RIT, Buffalo and Niagara, but lost Rutgers and Canisius, expanding the subdivision from its previous eight to 10 teams.
Senior forward Thomas Meka said the new additions to the NECHL only affect the team while traveling. However, he said the addition of Niagara goes hand-in-hand with the loss of Rutgers in terms of competition.
“We’ll play whoever we need to play, whoever’s on the schedule,” Meka said. “I think they’re (Rutgers and Niagara) kind of like the same caliber team. Rutgers was a very good team, and I know Niagara’s a very good team as well, so I think it’ll just be a flip-flop of the jersey.”
Last season, the Bonnies took on the Bearcats twice, winning both games (5-2, 6-5). The Bonnies clinched their first playoff berth in program history, obtaining the fifth seed position. The Bonnies lost to fourth-seeded Syracuse in the first round of the NECHL playoffs, 7-4, last February.
Junior captain Michael Iulianello said the team chemistry needs to improve before taking on Binghamton this season.
“We need to get used to everyone playing together, get some more experience and make sure everyone comes ready to play,” Iulianello said.
Meka said the team, composed of 14 returning players and nine freshmen, needs to play hard and smart for its second game of the season.
“We have a lot of talent on our team,” Meka said. “I think, more then we have had in previous years, and we just have to keep playing as a team and hopefully we can get big plays from big players.”
There’s a free bus to the game for fans. The bus begins picking up outside the Skellar tonight at 7:30. Admission costs $1.
“It’s the home opener, I’m sure everyone’s going to be pumped up, but we have to make sure we play within ourselves and not try to be the one-man show,” Iulianello said. “We have to make sure we work with our teammates and get a team win.”
Against Cornell, the Bonnies secured their first win in a 3-2 shootout. This served as the first time in club history the Bonnies won their first game of the season.
Iulianello said the Bonnies played a solid defense against the Big Red but needed to put in a few more goals in the net on power plays.
“In our defensive zone, I think the game against Cornell was a really good showing for the first game of the season,” Iulianello said. “We still let up 47 shots, but we definitely cut down on the amount of scoring chances we gave them compared to previous years.”
Meka was first to get on the score sheet just nine minutes into the game, assisted by Iulianello and junior forward Sean Perhacs.
Last season, the three scored 96 combined points on the first line. Meka joined the team second semester of last year just in time to fill Perhacs’ absence after leaving the team to study abroad in Costa Rica last Spring semester.
The Big Red bounced back, finding the net two minutes later and tying the score, 1-1. With five minutes left in the first, junior defensemen Mike Felter received a two-minute holding penalty, leaving the Bonnies a man down. The Big Red took advantage of the penalty and scored with four minutes and 54 seconds left in the first.
Both teams went scoreless in the second, with Iulianello ending the drought and scoring with 10 minutes left in the third. Neither team found the net in the remaining time and headed into overtime.
Coming up scoreless again, the teams headed into a shootout. Meka served as the Bonnies’ first shooter, hitting a shot top shelf. The Big Red responded, scoring on its first two attempts.
Perhacs came up next for the Bonnies, scoring and extending the shootout in to a sudden death. Senior goaltender Josh Popsie prevented Cornell’s next two shooters from scoring, leaving the fate of the Bonnies in the hands of freshman forward Derrick Jester.
Jester came through for the Bonnies, scoring the winning goal. Although Cornell had one last attempt, Popsie blocked the shot, solidifying their first win of the season and recording 45 saves on 47 shots.
Jester said he was pleased with his first collegiate performance and the amount of playing time he recieved. .
“It was awesome,” Jester said. “I didn’t know what to expect going into it, but I just took it shift by shift; it was a good start.”
Iulianello said he believes this year’s roster is the most talented group to hit the ice since he began playing at Bonas.
“We have a lot of depth this year,” Iulianello said. “I’m really excited about this season and I think we’ll be very successful.”
