The Air Force formula of balanced offense, tight defense, great goaltending and exceptional penalty killing worked to near-perfection Friday night.

The Falcons blasted American International, 5-0, as 12 skaters hit the scoresheet and Shane Starrett stopped 17 shots for the sixth shutout of his career. The victory helped AFA clinch a first-round bye in the Atlantic Hockey tournament.

Senior assistant captain A.J. Reid scored two goals for the second Friday night in a row, and Evan Feno, Tyler Rostenkowski and Erik Baskin added tallies. Eight skaters added assists, including Jordan Himley with two.

Air Force (19-8-4, 16-5-2 AHC) got points for the seventh time in eight games and pulled even with Canisius, which tied Sacred Heart, atop the conference standings. The Falcons have one game in hand.

AIC (7-18-6, 6-14-5) lost for the fifth game in a row and the 10th consecutive time to Air Force, which outshot the Yellow Jackets, 34-17.

Reid put the Falcons on the board 1:06 into the game, and Feno made it 2-0 halfway through the first. Reid extended the margin to 3-0 just 4:08 into the second.

Along the way, Air Force killed off all five penalties it took, and in the process passed Bemidji State for Division I’s top PK (89.1 percent).