The Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers [9] beat the Orange last March in the second game of the College Hockey America tournament, eliminating Syracuse from the playoffs. Upperclassmen such as sophomore Stephanie Grossi [10] circled Wednesday's game on her calendar, and made the most of the opportunity for revenge.
"All summer it's all you think about", said Grossi when asked about the matchup. "You just really want to kick their [butt]. It proved to the league that we're here and can compete this year."
Grossi scored her first career hat-trick, including 2 highlight-reel goals. After scoring the first goal of the game on a powerplay in the middle of the first period, she skated by a defenseman and deked out the goaltender 10 seconds into the second. She completed the hat-trick later in the period, scoring a similar goal and making the fans go ballistic.
"I think [Syracuse] had this game circled on their calendar from the end of last year. This was a hungry team that was out to get [us]", RIT coach Scott McDonald said after their defeat. "[Syracuse] was quick and tenacious, and we weren't. That's the difference."
The Orange [11] played a solid 60 minute game, keeping RIT in their zone for most of the game. The Tigers were held to just 16 shots on goal and couldn't get much going, making the rowdy crowd satisfied with the solid performance from Syracuse.
The Orange head out on a six-game road trip that starts in Canton, NY as they visit the St. Lawrence Saints on October 24. Syracuse returns to Tennity Ice Pavilion to battle the Cornell Big Red on November 14.
