If the Penn State ACHA Division I Icers had any lasting effects from losing five out of the last six games of its regular season, they were certainly gone by the time yesterday's game against Delaware began.

The No. 3 Icers thoroughly beat the No. 14 Blue Hens, 8-0, in the first round of the ACHA National Tournament in West Chester to advance to the quarterfinal round where they will face Duquesne at 1 p.m. today.

"It was a great start. I think we feel like we exorcised the demons from our lackluster performance against St. Clair," Icers head coach Joe Battista said, referencing the Icers' season-ending 8-3 loss.

Senior Justin DePretis and sophomore Nate Obringer scored two goals each for the Icers, who outshot Delaware, 36-14. Sophomore forward Sean Kenney recorded his first goal of the season in the rout.

Junior goaltender Chris Matteo made 14 saves to earn the shutout, his third of the year.

"Our defense was terrific. They didn't get many shots through and when they did, Chris was outstanding," Battista said. "He played with confidence and handled the rebounds really well. It was just a good overall performance."

Despite the shutout from Matteo, senior goaltender Paul Mammola will start between the pipes today.

"I think it's awfully difficult for one goalie to play four games in four days," Battista said. "I don't care who you are. It's very difficult to do that."

The Icers' power play, which had struggled down the final stretch of the regular season, went 2-for-5 against Delaware, with both scores coming from the top unit of DePretis, sophomore defenseman Keith Jordan, and seniors Luc Walker, Brett Wilson and Brendan Martin. DePretis scored both power play goals.

"It was good to see that start clicking," Battista said. "It just looked a lot better."

Penn State will now play No. 11 Duquesne, who upset No. 6 Weber State, 6-1.

The Icers and Dukes played twice during the regular season, with the two teams playing to a 3-3 tie at Penn State on Oct. 28 and the Icers earning a 7-4 win at Duquesne two days later.

Since then, Duquesne's program has gone through some disorder. The Dukes are being led by interim head coach Mike Sargo, who took over a week ago for Tim Bosack, who stepped down.

The team also did not play in its annual season-ending conference tournament because the university would not allow it to for unspecified "administrative issues," Battista said.

Because of Duquesne's absence from the Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association (ECHA) tournament, Drexel took its place, and ending up winning it, beating No. 1 Rhode Island, 2-1, in the process.

"Don't count Duquesne out. They've gone through some turmoil. Sometimes teams like that can..." Battista said, his voice trailing off.

The left-out words could be many things, one of which is upset. But neither Battista nor the Icers are thinking about that as they move on to the quarterfinals in search of their first ACHA title in two years. For now, they have successfully exorcised their demons.

Elsewhere...

No. 12 Oklahoma made a valiant effort in its first ever ACHA postseason game but lost to No. 5 Iowa State, 4-3 in overtime. The Cyclones will face No. 4 Illinois, who dispatched of No. 13 Robert Morris (Ill.) 3-0, in the quarterfinals at 10 a.m. today.