UTICA, NY -- The nationally-ranked No. 10/12 Utica College men's hockey team hits the road Friday to take on Morrisville State in non-league play at 7 p.m. 

Looking to Bounce Back:  The Pioneers started the season as one of the hottest teams in the country, jumping out to a program-best 8-0 record … Utica has hit a bump in the road with three consecutive losses and will look to get back on track at Morrisville Friday night … Utica is currently 8-3 overall … The Pioneers are 6-0 in ECAC West play and hold a four point lead over Hobart, Manhattanville and Nazareth, who are all tied for second with 4-2 conference ledgers. 

Last Time Out: Utica fell to SUNY Cortland in its last matchup on Friday … Sophomore Zach Borsoi and junior Mikhail Bushinski each scored one goal for the Pioneers in the game … The loss to Cortland marks the first time since 2009 that the Pioneers have lost three straight games at the Utica Aud … Utica is currently 3-0 on the road this season.   

National Polls: The Pioneers remain ranked in both the USCHO.com and D3hockey.com Division III National Polls released Monday … UC is now No. 10 in the USCHO.com poll and also ranks No. 12 in the latest D3hockey.com poll … Utica was ranked as high as No. 4 in the USCHO.com two weeks ago.   

Top Performing Forwards: Roman Ammirato still leads the team in goals scored this season with nine and his assist in the last game extended his point streak to 11 games … Ammirato is tied for second in the ECAC West in total points with 20 and is second in the conference in points per game (1.82) … Junior Kevin Valenti ranks seventh in the conference with a total of 13 points … Valenti is second on the team in goals with five and third in assists with eight.
 
Two Goalie System: The Pioneers have continued a two-goalie system with freshman Patrik Virtanen (Vantaa, Finland/Lincoln (USHL)) and junior Henry Dill (Columbus, OH/UMASS (Hockey East)) trading starts … Dill currently holds a team-high of 151 saves so far this season … Dill's record in the net is 4-1 and he has a 2.96 goals against average … Virtanen ranks second in the ECAC West with a goals against average of 2.28.
 
Scouting Morrisville State: The Mustangs are 1-8-2 overall this season.  Their only win came on Nov. 18 on the road against Fredonia (4-3) … Morrisville State is recently coming off of a loss at home (4-1) and another the road (8-1) against Oswego State last weekend … Senior Joseph Santino has scored a team-high of six goals this season … The Mustangs' goalie, Jared Young, has made the most saves on the team so far this season with a total of 245 saves and a record of 1-4-1.
 
Against the Mustangs: The Pioneers are 3-1 against Morrisville State in the past four seasons … They beat the Mustangs 6-1 in last season's matchup … Sophomore Hayden Dawes (Stony Plain, Alberta/Drayton Valley (AJHL)) led Utica in the win as he finished with three points (two goals/one assist) … Brett Szajner (Novi, MI/Amarillo (NAHL)) and Alex Roberts (Burnaby, British Columbia/Brooks Bandits (AJHL)) contributed two assists each in the victory … The Pioneers have won two games in a row against Morrisville. 

Looking Ahead: After facing Morrisville State on the road, the Pioneers will return to their home ice to face the Mustangs again … The game is scheduled for December 17^th, as Utica will host its annual New York Sash Teddy Bear Toss … Game time is 7 p.m.
 
Teddy Bear Toss is SOLD OUT: The 12th annual New York Sash Teddy Bear Toss is now sold out for the sixth consecutive year … In the last 11 years nearly 30,000 stuffed animals have been collected through the New York Sash Teddy Bear Toss … Fans can stop by the New York Sash Showroom at 349 Oriskany Blvd. in Whitesboro, NY to enter to win a 4 pack of tickets.

NCAA Div. III Championships: On March 24-25, Utica College and the City of Utica will proudly host the NCAA Division III Men's Hockey Championships at the Aud for the first time in program history … The four remaining teams in the NCAA Div. III Tournament will make their way to Utica, NY to participate in the semifinals and the finals at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. 

Social Media: Make sure to follow live updates of the game on the Pioneers official Twitter feed: @UCPioneers… If you are at the game and on Twitter, or talking about the game on Twitter, make sure to use #UCMoose… You can also "Like" the Pioneers on Facebook at www.facebook.com/UCpioneers ... Fans can also follow the Pioneers on Instagram: UCPioneers.