HERSHEY, Pa. ­­– Ethan Hoover and Dylan Miller scored goals in the third period for the Lebanon Valley College Men's Ice Hockey team, as the program dropped a hard-fought 7-2 contest to No. 13 SUNY Cortland in its season opener on Friday, Nov. 1 at Hersheypark Arena.

The Dutchmen generated an offensive opportunity early with the first shot on goal, as Jordan Steer had an attempt that was saved 41 seconds into the contest. The Red Dragons later opened the scoring 4:21 into the first period, taking a 1-0 lead on a goal by Justin Legault. Lebanon Valley worked to limit the opposition as the frame progressed, as goaltender Chris Branch made saves at the 5:01 and 6:38 marks. Branch also made three important saves for the Flying Dutchmen during a period of 35 seconds in the 10^th minute.

Mac Diver followed this by registering a pair of blocks within seven seconds in the 11^th minute. Offensively, LVC created scoring chances with a shot on goal by Brenden Yingling that was saved at the 11:21 mark and an attempt by Blake Dustin that was saved 13:12 into the first. Hoover later took a shot for the Dutchmen that was saved at the 17:15 mark. Back on the defensive end, Branch capped off the period with three saves in the last minute.

SUNY Cortland resumed the scoring 4:52 into the second period, taking a 2-0 advantage on a goal by Domenic Settimo. Lebanon Valley also continued to send shots toward the net as the frame went on, as Justin Davis took two shots within six seconds that were saved in the seventh minute of frame two. The Red Dragons countered with a shot that was saved by Branch at the 7:19 mark. LVC generated another opportunity 12:10 into the second, as Darion Benchich registered a shot that was saved.

The Red Dragons then added another point at the 14:32 mark in the second, going ahead 3-0 on a goal by Sam Christiano. SUNY Cortland later put two more tallies on the board within a period of 54 seconds, as the team went up 5-0 after a goal by Nathan Garnier at the 17:10 mark and a goal by Matthew DeSpirt at the 18:04 mark. The Red Dragons tacked on another with 50 seconds left in the third, advancing the score to 6-0 on a short-handed goal by Nate Berke. The Dutchmen followed this by continuing battling as the end of the period approached, as Miller and Dylan Gutierrez each took shots that were saved in the final five seconds.

Branch registered two more saves in just over two minutes at the beginning of the third period, making stops at the 1:54 and 2:01 marks. Lebanon Valley was also aggressive offensively early in the frame, putting six shots on goal during the first 5:32. The program tallied three attempts within 45 seconds in the third minute, as Cade Freer Cameron Croteau, and Jordan Stear each took shots that were saved. LVC had a key defensive stretch that began in the 10^th minute as well, as Diver and Haralds Jirgens both blocked a shot, and Chris Branch had two saves within a period of 1:11.

The Dutchmen got on the board at the 12:05 mark, making it a 6-1 contest. The squad scored its first goal of the year with a shot into the net by Hoover, courtesy of assists by Cade Helmer and Gutierrez. Lebanon Valley followed this with another point 30 seconds later, narrowing the score to 6-2. LVC scored again on a power-play goal by Miller after assists by Freer and Stear. Defensively, Branch also continued to limit the opposition with six saves over the next 3:58. SUNY Cortland then scored later on a power-play goal by Christiano with 34 seconds to go, prompting 7-2 to be the final score.

Inside the Box Score

• Hoover scored Lebanon Valley's first goal of the 2024-25 season.
• Miller also tallied his first goal of the campaign.
• Helmer and Gutierrez dished out assists on Hoover's goal.
• Freer and Stear were credited with the assists on the goal by Miller.
• Lebanon Valley took 24 shots during the contest, and five players tied for the team lead in shot attempts with three each.
• Branch made 34 saves for LVC.
• Defensively, the Dutchmen blocked 14 shots.
• Diver led the team with five blocks.
• Jirgens tallied three blocks and Reece McDonald recorded two.
• Croteau led the Flying Dutchmen with seven faceoff victories.

Up Next
The Dutchmen will return to action tomorrow at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2, as the team will host SUNY Morrisville at Hersheypark Arena.

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