For Geneseo’s senior forward and captain Dan Bosio, this season has been one filled with a number of new accomplishments including a 20-goal season and being the first player in program history to win four SUNYAC titles in his career at Geneseo. With all that success Bosio and his teammates are now focused on the biggest accomplishment the program could obtain with a successful run in the NCAA tournament starting with heir quarterfinal matchup with Babson on Saturday night.
“I am the first player with four conference championships playing here,” said Bosio. “But that is only because guys like Keens [Conlan Keenan], [Andrew] Romano and Emps [Tyson Empey] didn’t get the opportunity after 2020 with the postponement of last season. They have been super supportive of this year’s team, and we are playing for them as we continue to play for a national championship.”
Bosio has made the most of his senior season posting his best statistical season since being part of the Knights roster starting in the 2017-2018 season where he recorded 12 points as a freshman. This season Bosio has scored 22 goals in 26 games which exceeds the goal total of his first three seasons at Geneseo combined. Bosio has produced four game-winning goals and has recorded six multi-goal games so far this season. He has scored nine times on the power play and been a leader by performance on the ice for the Knights this season.
“First, I would give a lot of credit to my linemates,” stated Bosio. “They have given me the puck in some good locations for sure this season. I also have had more opportunities this season with the power play and more ice time that comes with being a more experienced player here. It’s taken awhile but I have learned where to go to be in a good position to get chances and I have also had some puck luck with pucks finding holes and ways into the net.”
While the offensive success has been impressive on the ice, Bosio and the rest of the leadership group at Geneseo have helped a young team mature quickly which has led to success this season. He along with Henry Cleghorn, Andrew Miller and Chris Perna have quickly instilled the culture into a young group of players that have learned their roles and played at a high level from the start of the season.
“We didn’t have to do too much as a leadership group with the young players,” stated Bosio. “Once they got here, we really ingrained the culture with them, but a lot of credit needs to go to the new players who bought in early to our system and their roles. I think the locker room is a little lighter this season – a little looser – with some levity that breaks some of the tension vs. past years. It all has helped us get to where we are now and will be go to our success in advancing in the tournament. If we all stick to and focus on our job and role on the ice, we will be fine.”
“Dan’s a great leader,” stated head coach Chris Schultz. “He’s really calm and composed. He’s one of those guys that is “beyond his years”. He committed an extra year not just for himself but for his teammates as well. Can’t ask for better than that.”
On Saturday, the Knights play a Babson squad that plays a very similar style to their own. They have great speed, great team defense and goaltending and don’t make mistakes that beat themselves. Bosio expects a challenging game but is excited for the opportunity to play again in the NCAA tournament.
“It’s great to play at home and we are hoping that some of the students will come back early from spring break for the game,” said Bosio. “We know the town fans will be there to support us as they always do. The break has been good to rest up a little but at this time everyone is ready to go. We will try to not get too high coming out for the game and use the warm-up to take a breath, soak in the atmosphere and the crowd and be ready to play our game from the opening face-off. It would be amazing to get back to the Frozen Four and win a national championship, but we are just focused on playing a very good opponent on Saturday night.”
