February 20, 2007

Mike Polsonetti ranks sixth in the nation in scoring by a defenseman. (Photo by Kevin Colton)

GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart College ice hockey team will travel to Elmira tomorrow, Feb. 21, for the first round of the ECAC West Tournament. The Statesmen, ranked 13th in the nation, will take on the Soaring Eagles in the Murray Athletic Center at 7 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students and children.

Hobart carries a 13-7-5 record into the postseason, while Elmira stands at 12-9-4 overall. The two teams have met three times this season, with the Statesmen taking two of the three games. Hobart won the last meeting handily, 7-2, on Feb. 10 in Elmira.

Eight players have accumulated at least 16 points to lead Hobart’s balanced offense. Senior Conor Bradley (West Hartford, Conn.) leads the pack with 33 points, while junior Shawn Houde (Manchester, N.H.) has 24 points, and senior Mike McCarthy (Medfield, Mass.) has 23.

Defensively, senior Mike Polsonetti (Lynn, Mass.) ranks sixth in the country in scoring by a defenseman with 21 points (1.11 ppg), while goaltender Keith Longo (Hopedale, Mass.) owns the ninth-best save percentage in the nation (.920) and is 15th in goals against average with 2.45. Along with Polsonetti, sophomore Andrew Breannan (Milford, Mass.) and senior Mike Manos (North Andover, Mass.) both rank in the top six in the league in defensemen scoring.

The winner of Wednesday’s game will travel to Manhattanville to take on the top-ranked Valiants (18-1-5) on Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. Fans unable to attend the game can listen to the game live on WEOS-FM (89.7/90.3 in Geneva, 88.1 in Ithaca) or follow live stats online at web.hws.edu/statesmen/hockey/schedule.asp by clicking on the live coverage link.