HOMESTAND CONCLUDES: RPI's brief two-game homestand concludes on Saturday afternoon, when the 13th-ranked Engineers host SUNY Potsdam at East Campus Stadium (4pm).
PERFECT START: The Engineers are 6-0 for just the second time in school history and the first time since 1951 ... That squad finished the year at 7-0 ... The 2009 Engineers were unbeaten (8-0-1) in their first nine regular season games, which is the most in school history ... Last year, RPI begin the year 6-0-1.
RENSSELAER LEADERS: Junior
Devon Baughen (3 goals, 3 assists) leads the Engineers with nine points ... He is followed by senior captain
Matt Carberry (3 goals, 2 assist) with eight points ... Fellow skipper and senior
Paul Lentine (2 goals, 2 assists) has six points ... Junior center back
Andrew Gondek is average a team-best 89.0 minutes per contest.
IN GOAL: Sophomore
Ryan Nealon has started all six games between the sticks and is 6-0 with a 0.17 goals against average and a .923 save percentage ... He has allowed just one goal – a penalty kick – and made 12 saves, including two penalty stops. Both PK saves have come in the last two games.
SCOUTING POTSDAM: The 6-1 Bears are fresh off a 1-0 victory at eighth-ranked St. Lawrence in which they were out-shot 17-6 ... Offensively, senior captain Ben Firlit has six goals for 12 points, while classmate and fellow captain Tom Benedetto (3 goals, 4 assists) has 10 points ... Junior Matt Parsons (2 goals, 2 assists) rounds out the top three scorers with six points ... In goal, senior Jesse Kohler (4-0) has not allowed a goal in five games (4 starts) and junior Nick Davies (2-1) has a 1.05 GAA and a .750 save % in three starts.
SEPTEMBER 14, 2013: Two second half goals countered a
Matt Koziol '15 tally in the 43rd minute, as Potsdam bested the Engineers, 2-1, in the Skidmore Classic in Saratoga Springs ... Tom Benedetto netted a penalty in the 50th minute, before Eduardo Figueroa bagged the winner in the 80th minute.
PERFORMERS OF THE WEEK: Junior center back
Andrew Gondek earned Liberty League Defensive Performer of the Week by helping the Engineers go 2-0 ... He scored a goal, while aiding a back line that surrendered one goal (a penalty kick) on just six shots ... Sophomore keeper
Ryan Nealon earned Rookie of the Week honors from both the league and the ECAC, after going 2-0 with a 0.50 goals against average and an .833 save percentage ... He made five saves, including a stop of a penalty kick against William Patterson, which preserved a 2-0 shutout win on Saturday.
