In the first 13 minutes of Saturday's contest, the Oswego Lakers, riding a wave of first period scoring, tallied three goals on the way to a 5-1 semifinal win.
Oswego used speed through the neutral zone to bolster their offensive attack, which reeled off 22 shots on freshman goalie Cory Gershon in the first period.
"I think everybody and his brother knew they were going to come out and have a passionate first period, and they certainly did," said coach Chris Schultz in an interview with USCHO.com. "They were very opportunistic, and they got up and down the ice faster than any team I've ever seen and before you know it we're down 3-0. If it wasn't for Gershon, it could have been 6-0 in the first period."
Though Geneseo started the game with some decent pressure on the opening shift, Oswego was quick to respond.
The Lakers opened the scoring just over two minutes into the game, on a blast from the point that Gershon could have never seen through the screen.
Oswego struck again three minutes later, banging home a third opportunity after a long span of pressure in the Geneseo defensive zone.
Not even a timeout by Schultz after the second goal could freeze the Oswego assault. Though Gershon managed to keep it a two-goal game for a while, Oswego generated too many chances and made it 3-0 at 12:55 on a deflection.
Once the Ice Knights escaped the first period, the game settled down, as Geneseo neutralized the Lakers' attack with puck possession in the offensive zone down low.
Midway through the second, Geneseo started to convert that puck possession into scoring chances, finally breaking onto the scoreboard at 11:35 on the power play.
Junior Sebastian Panetta found junior Jeff MacPhee, who fired a low shot from the pointthat senior co-captain Casey Balog deflected into the net to make it 3-1.
Although the Ice Knights were unable find the scoreboard again, the game was much closer in the second period, which Geneseo led in shots 16-13. By the end of the second period, it was clear the momentum hinged on whoever scored the next goal.
Unfortunately for the Ice Knights, it was Oswego's SUNYAC Rookie of the Year Eric Selleck who answered that call.
Selleck notched the next two goals, coming less than two minutes apart at the start of the third. He scored first on a redirection, then again on a one-timer on his next shift to seal Oswego's win.
A bright spot for Geneseo was the play of Gershon, who made 42 saves in the contest cementing his role as the starter of a promising Ice Knights team that will return 23 of 30 players next season.