Serratore, Falcons flirt with an upset

By ROMAN AUGUSTOVIZ, Star Tribune

Last update: March 29, 2008 - 10:55 PM

WORCESTER, MASS - Miami (Ohio) coach Enrico Blasi said Saturday he expected a tough, close game with the Air Force Academy.

And that is exactly what the RedHawks, who average a national-best 4.1 goals per game, got. Miami won 3-2 on Justin Mercier's goal in the 16th minute of overtime.

"They were no surprise to us," Blasi said. "There were opportunities in overtime. The game could have gone either way. Justin Mercier made a heck of a play."

This was the second year Air Force Academy had a high seed in jeopardy. The Falcons led the Gophers 3-1 midway through the third period in a first-round NCAA game in 2007 and lost to the tournament's top seed 4-3. This time they had a 2-1 lead against Miami until the RedHawks, the No. 2 overall seed, scored with 6:16 left in the third period.

"I'm so proud of our players," said Falcons coach Frank Serratore, whose roster has 10 Minnesotans. "They put us on the map, that's their legacy. Most people didn't even know we were a Division I hockey program."

The Falcons' NCAA appearance last year was their first ever. This was their second.

"I will take these two games to my grave," Serratore said. "We are not like Minnesota, which gets here every year."

Upsets galore Friday

The first day of the tournament was filled with upsets.

Notre Dame, the last team to receive an at-large bid, thumped New Hampshire 7-3 in the West Regional at Colorado Springs. New Hampshire was the top seed there, the Fighting Irish were fourth.

In the other game, third seed Michigan State, the defending NCAA champion, edged second seed Colorado College 3-1. CC was the WCHA regular-season champion and had an 18-2 record on home ice.

In the East Regional, No. 3 seed Clarkson eliminated a second WCHA team, beating second-seeded St. Cloud State 2-1, leaving the Huskies 0-8 in seven NCAA trips. Only Michigan, the top East seed and No. 1 seed overall, managed to win, 5-1 over Niagara.

WCHA teams were 48-18-10 in nonconference games during the regular season.

Quick shots

• Air Force Academy's spirits received a lift Saturday when Eric Ehn, a senior center, played in his first game since breaking his left fibula against Colorado College in mid-January. He has been practicing since March 7.

Last season he finished among the top three candidates for the Hobey Baker Award. This season he went into the Northeast Regional with six goals and 19 assists in 24 games.

• Holy Cross, which upset the Gophers 4-3 in an NCAA first-round game in 2006, is the host of this regional. The college is in Worcester. The NCAA is using a clip of Holy Cross celebrating at the end of that game in a a TV ad promoting its national tournaments. Minnesota was the No. 1 overall seed that year.

WORCESTER, MASS. - Justin Mercier made the play of the game Saturday at 15 minutes, 21 seconds into overtime. The junior left winger for Miami of Ohio skated around a defenseman, then switched to his backhand and put the puck into the far corner of the net as the RedHawks beat Air Force 3-2 in the first game of the Northeast Regional. Miami of Ohio (33-7-1) was the top seed in this regional and the second overall seed in the 16-team NCAA hockey field. But the RedHawks were severely tested. In overtime alone, fourth-seeded Air Force (21-12-6) had several good chances. The last came with five minutes to play when Jeff Hajner shot wide with the goalie down after making a save on a Falcons rush. Tommy Wingels gave the RedHawks a 1-0 lead at 19 seconds of the opening period on the first shot of the game. Air Force, which came into the game with a tournament-best nine-game unbeaten streak (8-0-1), took a 2-1 lead in the second period on rebound goals by Derrick Burnett and Josh Print in the first nine minutes. Burnett scored while he was off balance, on one skate in front of Miami goalie Jeff Zatkoff. Print's first goal of the season came after he followed his own shot to the net. The RedHawks tied the score 2-2 on Carter Camper's power-play goal at 13:44. Carter was on the left side of the net when a rebound came directly to him and, with Falcons goalie Andrew Volkening at the top of the crease, there was a lot of open net. Zatkoff finished with 23 saves, Volkening with 30. ROMAN AUGUSTOVIZ

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