ITHACA, N.Y. – Cortland scored nine straight goals after trailing 1-0 following the first quarter and the nationally third-ranked Red Dragons defeated 18th-ranked Ithaca, 9-3, under the lights at Ithaca's Higgins Stadium. Both teams entered the game unbeaten. Cortland is now 6-0 on the season, with the last five wins coming versus ranked opponents. Ithaca is 5-1.

Seven Red Dragons scored at least one goal in a balanced attack. Freshman Matt Rakoczy (Clifton Park/Albany Academy) and junior Taylor Mendoza (Greensboro, NC/Western Guilford) each found the net twice and senior Mike Tota (Webster/Webster Schroeder) recorded a goal and an assist.

Junior goalie Mike Kaminski (Sayville) made 10 saves and allowed only one goal in 53 minutes of action. Sophomore Scott Tota (Webster/Webster Schroeder) finished with one save over the final seven minutes.

Pat Slawta, Tom Mongelli and Connor Lowe each scored a goal for Ithaca and Brendan Green stopped 16 shots.

Mongelli's goal with 1:02 left in the first quarter gave Ithaca a 1-0 lead. The Bombers held Cortland off the scoreboard for the first 21:55 until Mike Tota's goal, assisted by Cody Consul (Webster/Webster Schroeder), knotted the game with 8:05 left in the first half. Tota set up Eric Richards (Skaneateles) for a goal with 3:19 left in the period and senior Jack Kennedy (Camillus/West Genesee) scored with 34 seconds remaining to give the Red Dragons a 3-1 halftime lead.

Cortland exploded for five third-period goals, four in the first six minutes, to extend the lead to 8-1 after three periods. Rakoczy and Mendoza each scored both of their goals in the third quarter. The Red Dragons led 9-1 after a Mike Cantelli (Holmdel, NJ) goal 1:14 into the fourth quarter. Cortland held Ithaca scoreless for a stretch of nearly 40 minutes before Lowe scored with 6:19 remaining. Slawta added a man-up goal with 4:44 left.

Cortland will travel to fourth-ranked RIT on Wednesday, March 28, at 4 p.m.


Cortland 9, Ithaca 3

GAME SUMMARY:

Team                       1-2-3-4    Final
Cortland (6-0)             0-3-5-1      9
Ithaca (5-1)               1-0-0-2       3

Scoring (Goals-Assists):

Cortland: Matt Rakoczy 2-0, Taylor Mendoza 2-0, Mike Tota 1-1, Jack Kennedy 1-0, Eric Richards 1-0, Nick Wolak 1-0, Mike Cantelli 1-0, Cody Consul 0-1
Ithaca: Pat Slawta 1-0, Tom Mongelli 1-0, Connor Lowe 1-0, Ryan Burns 0-1, Jake Long 0-1

Goalkeepers:
Cortland: Mike Kaminski, 10 saves (1 GA in 53:00); Scott Tota, 1 save (2 GA in 7:00)
Ithaca: Brendan Green, 16 saves (9 GA in 60:00)

Shots: Cortland 46, Ithaca 24
Ground Balls: Cortland 33, Ithaca 22
Turnovers: Ithaca 15, Cortland 13
Caused Turnovers: Cortland 10, Ithaca 5
Clears: Cortland 13-of-14, Ithaca 15-of-18
Faceoffs Won: Cortland 13, Ithaca 3
Penalties: Ithaca 2-2:00, Cortland 2-1:30
Extra-Man Offense: Ithaca 1-1, Cortland 0-1
Record after the game: Cortland (Red Dragons) 6-0 (ranked 3rd nationally in Div. III), Ithaca (Bombers) 5-1 (ranked 18th nationally in Div. III)