February 8, 2006

Bradley and No. 7 Hobart host Utica for a two-game set this weekend at The Cooler. (photo by Kevin Colton)

GENEVA, N.Y.—With second place in the ECAC West on the line, the Hobart College ice hockey team, which is ranked seventh in the latest USCHO.com Division III poll, will host the Utica Pioneers for a two-game set at The Cooler. The puck drops at 7 p.m. on Feb. 10 and at 4 p.m. the following afternoon.

Tickets are $3 for general admission and $1 for children under the age of 12. Hobart and William Smith students, faculty, and staff are admitted free with a valid Colleges ID.

Entering the weekend, Hobart (15-5-0, 6-4-0), Utica (10-6-3, 5-2-3), and Neumann (14-7-0, 6-5-0) are locked in a three-way tie for second place, with each team recording 12 points. The top four teams qualify for the conference tournament (March 3-4).

“It’s a huge game for both of us,” Head Coach Mark Taylor said. “Both teams are evenly matched and have a great deal of respect for each other. We would love to see the same support from the fans as in past games, including the largest road showing in recent memory at Elmira. We owe them a great game.”

Under the leadership of Taylor, Hobart is 3-1-1 against Utica at The Cooler. In the past three campaigns, the Statesmen have defended their home ice, boasting a 24-6-3 (.773) mark, including 7-1-0 this season.

This weekend will showcase the classic explosive offense against a suffocating defense. Hobart is ranked ninth in the nation in scoring offense (4.60), while the Pioneers counter with the fifth-ranked scoring defense (2.21). When the Statesmen net five or more goals, they are a perfect 12-0-0.

Offensively, Hobart has three student-athletes that have eclipsed the 20-point mark, led by junior forward Conor Bradley’s (West Hartford, Conn.) 24 points (16-8). He is tied for first in the nation with 11 power-play goals, one shy of the Hobart single-season record set by Keith Levinthal ’94.

Unbeaten in its past four contests (1-0-3), Utica relies on its stingy defense for success. Sophomore goalie Adam Dekker (Muskegon, Mich.) is 10th in the nation in goals against average (2.08) and save percentage (.917). During the unbeaten streak, he boasts a 0.71 goals against average and .971 save percentage.

Fans unable to make the trip to Geneva can hear all of the action live on WEOS-Radio (89.7/90.3 in Geneva, 88.1 in Ithaca). Streaming audio can be accessed via the Hobart home page.