Needing a victory to ensure a first-round bye and the possibility of hosting an Atlantic Hockey quarterfinal series, Air Force got the job done Saturday night.

Mason McCormick’s redirection of a shot by defenseman Nolan Cunningham with 11:52 to go in the game was the difference in a 2-1 victory over Robert Morris.

The Falcons (18-17-1, 15-10-1 AHA) earned the conference’s fourth seed and will play host to AIC on March 8-10 at Cadet Arena.

“We played better tonight. We played more Falcon hockey tonight,” Air Force coach Frank Serratore said. “Their team defense, keeping numbers back, almost enabled their goalie to steal that game.”

Special Teams Were Special

Aside from hiccups here and there, the Falcons have enjoyed strong special teams all season. Saturday night was no exception.

McCormick’s clincher came on one of Air Force’s eight power plays. It marked the second night in a row the sophomore scored on the man advantage.

“Finally, we found a way to score that power-play goal,” Serratore said. “When all was said and done, it was our special teams that made the difference.”

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Cunningham, who earlier had what would have been his first NCAA goal disallowed after an RMU challenge, teed up a shot from the high slot. The shot went to the right of McCormick, who was stationed in front of Francis Boisvert. McCormick changed the shot’s direction enough to elude Boisvert, who was stellar all game. The grad transfer from St. Lawrence stopped 44 shots.

“He was really good,” Serratore said. “He absorbed pucks. You’ve got to give Robert Morris credit. They played a great road game. They gave up a lot of shots, but they protected the good ice. This was a hard-fought game. The game was a dangerous one because they didn’t do much to beat themselves.”

The only other goal the Falcons got came 7:35 into the second period. Austin Schwartz got control of the puck behind the Colonials net and fed senior Brian Adams on Boisvert’s left doorstep for a short-handed goal. Schwartz was the beneficiary of an Adams pass for a clinching goal in Friday’s 5-2 victory. He finished the weekend with four points.

Adams’ goal tied the score after RMU (10-23-3, 7-17-2) grabbed the lead 4:05 into the game on Tanner Klimpke’s second goal in two games.

“We had to overcome some adversity,” Serratore said. “We had to come from behind. That team was not going to beat itself, we had to beat them. There’s a lot to feel good about.”

Luke Rowe Plays His Final Game For Falcons

The program honored its nine seniors before the game. Serratore then encouraged them to take a victory lap after the game. That marked the final trip across Cadet Arena’s surface for Luke Rowe, the only three-time captain in program history.

The NCAA granted Rowe an extension to continue playing through the end of the regular season after graduating in December. He finished his Air Force career with 125 games, 76 points and 21 goals. His final point came on a blast from the point on Friday that McCormick tipped in for a power-play goal to give the Falcons a 4-2 lead.

Rowe compiled his best season statistically, finishing with 29 points. He was AHA Defensive Player of the Week four times this season and also is on the Hobey Baker Memorial Award ballot.

>>READ: Salute to Air Force’s 2024 Seniors

Notes: Goalie Guy Blessing stopped 19 of 20 shots. … Clayton Cosentino won 19 of 32 face-offs (59.4 percent) and the Falcons won 45 of 73 (61.6 percent) draws overall.

©First Line Editorial 2024