{"id":31129,"date":"2010-03-12T13:35:30","date_gmt":"2010-03-12T19:35:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uscho.com\/2010\/03\/12\/ncaa-diii-quarterfinal-middlebury-vs-plattsburgh\/"},"modified":"2010-08-17T19:57:55","modified_gmt":"2010-08-18T00:57:55","slug":"ncaa-diii-quarterfinal-middlebury-vs-plattsburgh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uscho.com\/2010\/03\/12\/ncaa-diii-quarterfinal-middlebury-vs-plattsburgh\/","title":{"rendered":"NCAA D-III Quarterfinal: Middlebury vs. Plattsburgh"},"content":{"rendered":"
After a two year absence from the national stage where the Panthers failed to secure at-large bids, the Panthers are excited to be returning to the NCAA tournament for the fourth time. There, they will face a very familiar foe. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I think it is just a terrific matchup and very exciting for our players and fans to get to play one more game at home this season where we haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t had as many home games as other seasons,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said head coach Bill Beaney. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153This is the third matchup between us and Plattsburgh this season. They beat us early on and we won the second match-up so the third one on Saturday is for the season series and of course to move on to Lake Placid. Bob [Emery] does a great job with his team so we know they will be ready to play. I am glad to playing it here as we have certainly had better success against them here as opposed to playing in their rink.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
The Panthers have been on a roll since February and currently are riding a nine game winning streak led by the dynamic combination of sophomore Martin Drolet and freshman Mathieu Dubuc. The power play has been deadly at almost a 26% success rate, so the Cardinals will need to stay out of the box against the Panthers. <\/p>\n
Assuming the number one position in net, sophomore John Yanchek has been very good at the right time of the year for the Panthers. On paper his numbers don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessarily jump out at you but his coach has great confidence in his young netminder. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153If you look at John\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s record he hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t lost very often this season and that is not just the team in front of him,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d noted Beaney. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153He has come up with the big save when we have needed it and has been very solid over the last part of the season. I think the game at Bowdoin was another confidence booster in his first conference championship game and now we are focused on a bigger opportunity starting Saturday in front of our home fans — it will be a great atmosphere for our team.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
Four seniors on the roster played in the overtime loss against Oswego back in 2007 and for them, this is a special return to the NCAA tournament with a younger cast of teammates built around them. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I really couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be happier for John [Sullivan] and Charlie [Townsend] and the rest of the guys that have worked so hard to get back to this place after the prior two years where ewe just fell short of our goals. We have gotten great leadership from John this year and really have seen terrific team play and sacrifice by other guys that has this team playing pretty well right now.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n
A native son of Lake Placid, Beaney would certainly like his team to get to the Final Four next weekend and celebrate a homecoming in a big way with the Panthers, but there is no looking past Plattsburgh and the general excitement and camaraderie the quarterfinals have generated. <\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I think the best thing unquestionably about playing in the tournament is that it extends the season for the team and we get to spend more time together and enjoy all that is the team and interactions among the players. That is really special and we are going to enjoy the week and get ready to play a great team on Saturday and enjoy the atmosphere at home. This is really a fun time of the year and our kids are really looking forward to the challenge and reaching the goals we have set out as a team.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n
Last year was supposed to be Plattsburgh’s year. They entered the NCAA playoffs with just one loss, a conference championship, and on paper, one of the most talented teams in the country. Then, they promptly lost in the quarterfinals to Neumann, the eventual national champion.<\/p>\n
This year, they entered the season with huge question marks in net and without their leading scorer. They lost five times, finished second in the SUNYAC standings, and got beat for the third time this year by Oswego in the conference championship game<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, all five of those losses were to fellow NCAA playoff qualifiers: the aforementioned three to Oswego, Norwich, and Middlebury. Thus, they received an at-large bid.<\/p>\n “I don’t look at it as a second chance,” Plattsburgh coach Bob Emery said. “The automatic bids are very deserving but an at-large bid is probably the most deserving bid in the sense you get it because it proves you had a good season. We had the number one strength of schedule in the country.”<\/p>\n If you just look at the stats, you would wonder how could Plattsburgh have a question mark in net? Sometimes, stats don’t tell the whole story.<\/p>\n