Northfield, Vt. - The Spartans suffered a 6-2 loss at the hands of the eighth-ranked Norwich Cadets on Saturday in ECAC East action. Castleton was outshot 24-19 on the day, marking the first time this season the Spartans allowed more shots on goal than they recorded.

The Norwich offense was led by Chris Duszynski, who netted his second hat trick of the year. Travis Janke, Trevor Stewart, and Ryan Whitell each finished with a goal as well as the Cadets rolled to their seventh win of the season. Ryan Frost and Colin Murray each netted tallies for the Spartans.

The first period was tightly played, with Castleton holding a narrow 8-7 advantage in shots on goal, but it was Norwich who struck first. Duszynski tallied his first goal of the evening 15:20 into the contest to put the Cadets up 1-0. 

In the second, Castleton tied the game at 1-1 with a goal from senior forward Colin Murray. Murray netted his fourth goal of the season 4:02 into the second period to draw the Spartans even at 1-1. Castleton's momentum was quickly stifled however, as the Cadets answered with another go-ahead goal just 2:14 later. Janke put the home team up 2-1 with just under 14 minutes to play in the second. Stewart added a power play goal late in the period, lifting the Cadets to a 3-1 lead at the second intermission.

In the third period, Norwich continued to pile on. Just 1:08 after returning to the ice, Whitell made it 4-1 in favor of the Cadets, beating Erick Cinotti. Duszynski would net his second tally with a power play goal before Castleton's Ryan Frost cut the Norwich lead to 5-2. Duszynski finished his hat trick with an insurance goal with 5:41 remaining, making it 6-2 Cadets, which held as the final score.

Matic Marinsek earned his sixth win of the season in net for Norwich, making 17 saves to improve to 6-1-2 on the season. Erick Cinotti took the loss in net for the Spartans, making 11 saves before being pulled. Mark Hochman made his debut for the Spartans, making seven saves in the third period.

Castleton falls to 5-4-1 on the season, including a 4-3-1 mark in the ECAC East. The squad will return to action on December 14 when they host non-conference opponent Plymouth St. in their final game before the holiday break.