Stunned silence. That was all you could hear in the stands of the Greenberg Ice Pavilion on Saturday night, save for the cry of joy coming from the mob of players wearing the red-and-blue Duquesne sweaters.

Anyone in attendance for the Penn State-Duquesne tilt had the pleasure of watching a spectacular hockey game, and the unfortunate opportunity of seeing that same game marred by an overzealous officiating crew.

Before the Dukes' Mike Papciak beat Penn State goalie Nick Signet for the game-winning tally in the overtime shootout, Icers defenseman Kyle Mills had his own chance to seal the game. At least he thought he did.

"I heard the whistle, and I went to pick the puck up," Mills said. "Then I thought the ref was trying to signal me to stop."

So he stopped. What ensued was a lot of yelling, screaming and pleading. However, in the end, Mills was the victim of a technicality. He wouldn't get his chance to shine.

Sadly, this is what happens when referees take games into their own hands instead of allowing games to unfold on the ice, as they are supposed to.

Was the call right?

Technically, yes. Mills stopped going forward, which is supposed to end his attempt.

Anyone could see that the play was a result of confusion and not an attempt by Mills to gain an unfair advantage. He never even got to see the whites of the opposing goaltender's eyes.

"My belief, and what was confirmed by everybody else, is that the referee made a mistake," Icers head coach Scott Balboni said. "The linesman blew the whistle and put his hand up ... I don't agree with him in any way, shape or form, but that's the call he made."

Would Mills have scored?

Maybe, but there's no way to tell. The Icers were certainly crippled by the missed opportunity, though, and suffered a loss to a team that had no business coming into their house and winning.

And that's what should be most worrisome to anyone in the Penn State locker room. Great teams don't allow mental lapses like that. Usually, when the Icers fall behind to an inferior team, they simply hit the "on" switch and make things right again.

They had some close calls in the first half of the season, but they never dropped a game to a severe underdog. Since the break, they've done so twice, losing to West Chester and Duquesne.

With Rhode Island coming to town this week, none of that is going to fly. The Rams, who beat Penn State in last year's national championship, have revenge on their minds after being swept by the Icers earlier in the season. They'll pounce on every mistake that Penn State makes.

Balboni has preached to his team to "step on the throats" of its opponents when ahead. They didn't do it on Saturday, but the quickest way to make everyone forget about the loss is beating the Rams this weekend.

And you can be sure that Balboni will want to step on some throats if his team gets a lead.

I just hope they take their skates off first.