 rjonas, Fri, January 19th, 2007 Apparently, there were plenty of Capital District Plattsburgh State alumni who missed their hockey team as much as I did. More than half of the approximately 400 fans that were at Weibel Avenue Arena in Saratoga Springs for Tuesday's Plattsburgh State-Skidmore game were wearing Cardinals jerseys, sweatshirts and caps. Ican almost imagine what the players from both teams were thinking: Plattsburgh State players "Wow, this was more than we expected. It's almost like a home game." Skidmore players "Wow, there's a big crowd here tonight. But why are so many of them are wearing red and white?" Plattsburgh State must have fed off its fans because the Cardinals dominated Skidmore in all facets of the game on their way to an 8-1win. Plattsburgh out-skated Skidmore to every loose puck, shot with deadly accuracy and the defense protected goaltenders Chris Molinaroand Andy Stricker by blocking several Skidmore shots. By the time it was over, the Cardinals looked like they were the 13th-ranked team in the nation, not the Thoroughbreds. It didn't surprise me that so many Plattsburgh State alumni showed up for a hockey game. Back when I was in college (1988-91), the hockey team was the only team that the students supported in large numbers. When the Cardinals had a weekend home game, some students actually held off on going to off-campus parties until after the game. Of course it being Plattsburgh, some of the students already had a few beers in them before the game began. Having a winning tradition helps. While the basketball teams struggled in those days, the hockey team piled up victories. It didn't matter which SUNYAC team it was we knew we were going to win. Potsdam? Easy win. Geneseo? Please! Oswego? The Lakers probably had a better chance of scoring with the tennis balls we threw at them than the hockey pucks they were playing with. And before you vilify Plattsburgh State fans for throwing tennis balls, Oswego fans used to throw oranges at the Cardinals when they played out there. Now, they throw bagels. The Plattsburgh State-Skidmore rivalry isn't nearly as fierce as theones the Cardinals have in their league. In order for that to happen,Skidmore would need to actually challenge Plattsburgh in a game. The Thoroughbreds certainly didn't do that Tuesday night, which was a bitsurprising given that they entered with a 9-3-2 record that included victories over national powers Middlebury and Norwich, while Plattsburgh owned a 7-6-4 record. Still, given that Skidmore has aroster loaded with freshmen and sophomores and a coach who's looking to the prep and junior hockey teams for talent, you'd have to think that the Thoroughbreds are on the right track toward building a powerhouse. So at some point, they should be able to give Plattsburgh a real challenge. The rivalry should have some time to grow. Skidmore is already scheduled for a trip to Plattsburgh next year, and the Cardinals will return to Saratoga Springs to play the Thoroughbreds again in the 2008-09 season. And as absence makes the heart grow fonder, I'm sure that those of us who live in the Capital District and attended Plattsburgh State will flock back to the Weibel Avenue Arena in two years for that rematch. Don't worry, Skidmore. We will reserve the tennis balls for Oswego. blog comments powered by Disqus  |
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