Air Force took Atlantic Hockey’s top team to the wire for the second night in a row, but the Falcons could not find the extra goal they needed and saw their season end with a 5-2 loss to RIT at Rochester, N.Y.

Andrew DeCarlo scored his fifth goal of the season to give the Falcons an early 1-0 lead, and fellow sophomore forward Austin Schwartz tied it midway through the third period with his fifth, but a goal by RIT’s Ryan Nicholson gave the Tigers (22-11-1) the lead for good with 8:32 to play in regulation. Two empty-net goals by Tanner Andrew, who also scored twice Friday, inflated the final margin.

The defeat ended a disappointing season for the Falcons (12-22-2, 7-18-1 AHA). They absorbed several key injuries and did not qualify for Atlantic Hockey’s playoffs despite being picked third in the league’s preseason coaches poll.

Air Force, which will graduate seven seniors, finished in 10th place, three points behind ninth-place Bentley. After a midseason, nine-game slump, the Falcons won six of nine games to at least give themselves a chance at a playoff spot.

But the season unraveled with a closing five-game skid, which included the back half of a six-games-in-nine-days stretch earlier in February.

Junior Maiszon Balboa made 29 saves for the Falcons, while Kolby Matthews made 25 for the Tigers.

MORE FALCONS: AFA’s news release

Notes: Senior Willie Reim finished as the Falcons’ top scorer with 26 points, and he tied junior Will Gavin, who returned to the lineup Saturday, for the team lead in goals with 11. The top defense pair of Brandon Koch and Luke Rowe each ended up with 24 points, while Gavin had 22 and sophomore Clayton Cosentino had 21. … Reim and Koch had assists on DeCarlo’s goal.

©First Line Editorial 2023