Pine Valley, NY – The Elmira College Men's Hockey team put up the first two goals of the game, but visiting Oswego State scored four unanswered goals and added on three markers late to win 7-3 Friday evening in the season-opening contest for both teams. The win improves the second-ranked Lakers to 1-0, while the loss drops the sixth-ranked Soaring Eagles to 1-0.
 
Jesper Strale '14 (Uppsala, Sweden -- Springfield Pic's) scored off a feed from Kevin Willer '12 (Toronto, ONT -- North York Rangers) just 20 seconds into the contest to set the momentum for the Purple and Gold. At the 5:46 mark Wes Consorti '12 (Brantford, ONT -- Niagara University) put home his first marker of the season with Brendan Sanders '12 (Mississauga, ONT -- Vaughan Vipers) and Colin Hoey '13 (Doylestown, PA -- New England Huskies) registering helpers on the score.
 
Halfway through the first period Oswego State answered back with its first goal of the game as Chris Brown fed Chris Ayotte for a short-handed goal. The Lakers carried momentum throughout the second stanza as they outscored EC 3-0 to take a 4-2 lead into the third period. Luke Moodie scored off assists from Paul Rodrigues and Jon Whitelaw. Whitelaw added a score of his own at the 13 minute mark of the second period, as Moodie registered an assist on the play. With just under four minutes left in the second period Tyler Leimbrock banged home Oswego State's fourth goal of the game with Ian Boots and Hank VanBoxmeer tallying helpers on the power play goal.
 
Despite trailing 4-2 after two periods Elmira dug deep and got itself back into the game halfway through the third when Willer registered his second point of the game as he sniped a shot from the point off the dish from Martin Lee '12 (Toronto, ONT -- Vaughan Vipers) and Sanders. The Lakers tacked on three insurance goals in the last five minutes of the contest. Zack Josepher rifled a shot from the point, beating EC goaltender Darren MacDonald '13 (Stittsville, ONT – Nepean Raiders). Moodie and Rodrigues had assists on the play. Less than a minute later Kyle Badham scored from just behind the net on a tough bank shot off a feed from Leimbrock. Three minutes later the Lakers pounded on the attack when David Titanic knocked in his first marker of the season off assists from Leimbrock and Taylor Farris. Overall the Lakers outshot the Soaring Eagles 18-7 in the final stanza, which ultimately decided the game.
 
MacDonald finished with 28 saves in net for EC, while Paul Beckwith and Andrew Hare combined to stop 34 shots for Elmira. The Soaring Eagles are back in action tomorrow night when they visit Oswego State at 7:00 p.m. to complete the home-and-home series.