CORTLAND, NY – Sam Christiano (Buffalo/Buffalo Jr. Sabres) scored the game-winning goal with 9:10 remaining in the third period, and Nolan Suggs (White Lake, MI/El Paso Rhinos) recorded his first collegiate shutout, to lead the Cortland men's hockey team to a 2-0 home victory over Canton in the first round of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) tournament in Alumni Arena on Wednesday evening.

The Red Dragons improve to 14-11-1 on the year, and will head to top-seeded, and nationally top-ranked, Hobart on Saturday evening for a semifinal matchup. Canton concludes the season with a 12-13-1 record.
 
Christiano's goal was his 11 of the season, tied for the most on the Red Dragons. Thomas Rockey (Mullica Hill, NJ/Rochester Jr. Americans) also netted a goal for Cortland. Suggs stopped all 18 shots he faced to register the shutout, while earning his sixth win of the season.
 
Trey Miller made 30 saves in goal for the Roos, while six different players had two shot attempts.
 
The Red Dragons had the first strong scoring chance of the game just two minutes into the opening period, but Miller came up with a tremendous save on Devlin O'Kane (Chicago, IL/New Jersey 87's) in front of goal.
 
Cortland committed the first penalty of the contest just under seven minutes in, but the Red Dragons' netminder made two saves to kill off the penalty.
 
Late in the period, Cortland earned a power play after a hooking penalty by the Roos. With two minutes left in the period, Miller lunged to his right to deny Morley Phillips (Raleigh, NC/Amarillo Wranglers) on the power play.
 
The one penalty assessed to each side during the first period were the only infractions called in the entire contest.
 
Suggs came up with a huge save with seven minutes to go in the second period on Canton's Dylan Pollock, getting his glove to a shot that was heading into the top right corner of the net. Shortly after, a shot by Nolan Zotter rang off the crossbar for Canton's best opportunity of the game.
 
Cortland had its own chance go off the pipe in the final minute of the second period, as a shot from the right faceoff circle by Dino Mannetta (Wading River/P.A.L. Jr. Islanders) struck off the left post, keeping the game scoreless into the second intermission.
 
The Red Dragons finally broke through with over nine minutes remaining in regulation. Mannetta took a shot from the right point that went wide but bounced off the boards behind the goal back to JC Humphreys (Canonsburg, PA/Rochester Jr. Americans). Humphreys slid the puck across the front of the goal to Christiano, who was able to sneak a shot past Miller and give Cortland the 1-0 lead.
 
Rockey gave Cortland a needed insurance goal with under two minutes remaining for his ninth goal of the season. Matthew DeSpirt (Hamburg/Northeast Generals) blocked a shot in the Cortland defensive zone to Rockey, who started a 2-on-1 break with Jack Martin (Scotia/Seacoast Spartans). Martin delivered a pass back to Rockey from the left faceoff circle to the right side of the net, where Rockey slipped a shot into the goal for the Red Dragons.
 
Canton pulled Miller for an extra attacker shortly after the ensuing faceoff, but the Cortland defense was able to prevent the Roos from recording any shots on goal in the final minutes, with Nick Serio (Bayville/P.A.L. Jr. Islanders) blocking two shots in quick succession with just over a minute left.