March 12, 2011
Final Stats
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LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. - Siena scored eight unanswered goals and held St. John's without a score for the final 44:04 in a convincing 10-4 victory Saturday afternoon at Siena Turf Field. Chris Roth and John Rogener each netted hat tricks for the Saints which finished their season-opening homestand a perfect 3-0.
After Siena (4-2) scored the first two goals, St. John's (1-3) answered back with four straight tallies to take back momentum and open a 4-2 lead with 14:04 left in the second quarter. It would be the last time that the Red Storm would find the back of the net.
After allowing in goals on each of the first four shots he faced, Siena goalie Tom Morr was impenetrable the rest of the way. He responded by saving the final 10 shots on goal, stymieing the St. John's offensive attack.
Offensively, the Saints received goals from six different players and took a 5-4 lead into the break as Bryan Neufeld scored the eventual game-winner with 1:51 left in the half. Neufeld added an assist to extend the nation's longest active scoring streak to 41 games.
The second half was all Siena as the Saints scored all five goals in the stanza, picking up timely tallies while shutting down the Red Storm offense. The Big East's leading scorer Kevin Cernuto was limited to just one assist, while the top man-up unit in the conference went just 1-for-9.
Siena defender Duncan Seale did a tremendous job on Cernuto all game long, while teammate Kevin Cotter wreaked havoc down low on defense, causing three turnovers and picking up three groundballs. They anchored a defensive unit along with Morr which was rejuvenated during the homestand, allowing just 19 total goals in the Saints' three wins.
On the offensive side of the field, Roth paced the Saints with four points while Rogener recorded his second career hat trick. Collin Parkhurst, Danny Martinsen and Mic DeBellis also added goals for the Saints which won for just the second time in 16 all-time matchups with St. John's.
The Saints return to action Saturday when they open conference play with a major test at Marist in a 3 p.m. face-off from Poughkeepsie. The Saints and Red Foxes were picked first and second respectively in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
