POTSDAM, N.Y.— Freshman forward Jack Bloem (Saratoga Springs, N.Y./Connecticut Rangers) recorded his first career hat trick as the SUNY Potsdam men's hockey team (8-16-1, 4-11-1 SUNYAC) rallied from a 2-0 deficit for a 5-2 victory over SUNY Cortland (9-16, 3-13). Junior forward Nate Zweig (Binghamton, N.Y./Syracuse Stars) and freshman forward Rob Clerc (Wappinger Falls, N.Y./Oswego State) also scored for the Bears.

The first period saw lots of whistles, but very little offense. The Red Dragons had three power plays in the scoreless opening period, but each team finished with just five shots.

The second period saw three goals. Cortland jumped out in front on the power play at 7:38. After good puck movement junior forward Stephano Alonzi (King City, Ontario/Burlington Cougars) slammed the puck home at the right side of the net. At 14:12, Alonzi struck again with an even-strength marker, ripping a shot from the slot past senior assistant captain Nate Skidmore (Syracuse, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres) for a 2-0 lead. Nearly four minutes later, at 18:00, Zweig knocked the rebound off a shot from sophomore forward Brett Horn (Cary, N.C./Humboldt Broncos) into the net. Senior captain Mike Sweeney (Pittsburgh, Pa./PAL Islanders) picked up the second assist. The Bears outshot Cortland 24-11 in the period, but still trailed by one heading into the second intermission.

Potsdam scored four times in the third period to open up a three-goal lead. Just 53 seconds in, Horn won the faceoff in the Red Dragon zone and poked the puck into the slot where Bloem knocked it home. At 5:24, Horn set up Bloem's second marker with a second assist from sophomore defenseman Joseph Richardson (Palm Beach, Fla./PAL Islanders). Freshman forward Rob Clerc (Wappinger Falls, N.Y./Oswego State) made it 4-2 at 7:18 with assists from Richardson and senior defenseman Trevor Dennis (Rochester, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres). With 6:03 remaining, Bloem tipped a shot from junior defenseman Sean Winikates (Phoenix, Ariz./Philadelphia Jr. Flyers) at the point past Cortland junior goalie Nick Modica (Suffern, N.Y./New Jersey Hitmen) to complete his hat trick and close the scoring.

Skidmore made 21 saves for his 14th career victory. Modica finished with 36 stops. The Bears outshot Cortland 41-23. Potsdam was 1-for-2 on the power play and Cortland was 1-for-6.

After the game, seniors Dennis, Dom Horvath (Toledo, Ohio/Brantford 99ers), captain Ben Mariano (Harrisburg, Pa./Hartford Wolfpack), Skidmore and Sweeney were honored for their careers on Senior Night.