Kirby cleans up for Air Force's first victory

Tim Kirby made the play of the young season for previously winless Air Force, an emotional goal that could turn the Falcons’ year around.

With less than 2 minutes left in a tie game with Rochester Institute of Technology, Kirby bulled his way in from the corner, forced the puck into the crease and whacked it in with a second try. That gave Air Force a 5-4 win in a battle of desperate teams before the 11th straight sellout at Cadet Ice Arena on Friday.

“I didn’t think I could get past their guy to the net, but I shrugged him off and pushed the puck in,” said Kirby, whose goal came with 1:45 left in regulation. “It hit (RIT goalie Jared DeMichiel’s) skate and was halfway in and I hit it again.”

Air Force (1-4) and RIT (0-4) both needed the win in their Atlantic Hockey Association opener.

“It’s great to get that 500-pound gorilla off our back,” said Falcons coach Frank Serratore.

The Falcons, winners of the AHA Tournament the last three seasons, have high expectations for this season, as does RIT. Air Force goes for the sweep at 7:05 tonight.

“This one is huge,” said Falcons freshman Kyle De Laurell, a 2007 Pine Creek graduate who had three assists. “We needed something to give us confidence going into conference play. This is a good start.”

Serratore was especially pleased with his team’s fight after RIT made it 1-0 just 54 seconds before the first intermission.

”That sucked the life out of our bench,” he said. “I had a long talk to our guys after that period about spirit. We have to have fun.”

AFA responded by outshooting the Tigers 21-6 and winning its first period of the season for a 4-3 lead at second intermission.

AFA freshman John Kruse assisted on the Falcons’ first three goals. The first was scored by freshman Danny Durham, who plays on that fourth line manned by the three freshmen.

“The sky’s the limit for those guys,” Kirby said.

“I thought they were our best even-strength line tonight,” Serratore said. “De Laurell looked like a power forward; we usually have those small, quick guys, but he looked like Cam Neely and wheeled his way to the net and we scored on two of those.

“Usually you hope your fourth line is just even and eats up minutes.”