Falcon rally falls short in 5-2 loss at Robert Morris

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Air Force scored two goals early in the third period, but the rally fell short in a 5-2 loss to Robert Morris in the deciding third game of the Atlantic Hockey America quarterfinal series, Sunday, March 8, at Clearview Arena in Pittsburgh, Pa. With the win, RMU advances to the AHA semifinals.

Robert Morris (15-19-3 overall) took a 1-0 on the rush in a 4-on-4 situation. Jackson Reineke dropped a pass for Max Wattvil at 13:48. Late in the period, it appeared that Air Force tied the game on the power play. However, the goal was disallowed due to contact with the goaltender. Nine seconds after the goal was disallowed, a major penalty was called on Air Force.

Late in the second period, RMU scored two goals for a 3-0 lead. With 4:35 left, Colonial Ryan Taylor scored with a wrister from the high slot just after an RMU power play expired. With 11.7 seconds left, Michael Felsing scored with a tap-in on the rush.

The Falcons rallied with two goals early in the third period. On the rush, Holt Oliphant and Aidan Wilis set up Jake Peterson in the slot. Peterson netted his fifth of the season at 5:29. The Falcons struck again less than three minutes later to cut the Colonial lead to 3-2. Freshman Simon Houge sent a puck down low and freshman Oliver Genest won the puck on the back wall. Genest fed Dubois in the slot for a one-timer. Houge earned his first collegiate point on Dubois' second of the year. With the Falcons buzzing, the Colonials forced a turnover in the neutral zone and Felsing scored his second of the game on a breakaway at 12:44. Air Force pulled the goalie with 4:25 left, but Colonial John Babcock scored into the empty net from deep in his own end with 4:18 remaining.

"I thought we were in control early," head coach Frank Serratore said. "But then they found their way to that first goal. They didn't have the energy that they did last night, but their goalie Schenkel was outstanding. We took some avoidable penalties that certainly didn't help. We were chasing the scoreboard most of the game and they navigated the chaos of the game better than we did."

Air Force outshot Robert Morris, 62-17. The 62 shots are a season high. Air Force was 0-for-5 on the power play and killed all four of RMU's man-advantages. Charlie Schenkel made 60 saves for the Colonials while Dominik Wasik made 12 for the Falcons.

"There was no quit in this group," Serratore added. "This young group found a way to win 18 games. This group played above its pay grade all season long. We started the season with an unproven goalie and we lost some key guys from last season. This could have been a rebuilding year, but this group willed themselves into a contender. I'm real proud of this group. They have a lot of substance."

Air Force's season ends with an 18-15-4 record, the first winning season since 2018-19. The 18 wins tie (2023-24) as tie as the most since 2017-18. Air Force went 8-4-2 in the final 14 games of the season and earned 11 road wins, the most since the 2017-18 season.

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