NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Castleton men's hockey team dropped a New England Hockey Conference matchup with fourth-ranked Norwich on Saturday afternoon, falling 2-1 to the Cadets at Kreitzberg Arena.

Will Laking scored the lone Spartan goal in the contest, taking a feed from Ryan Smith early in the third period. Brody Wagner was saddled with the loss for Castleton, making 21 saves in the contest.

The loss drops Castleton to 0-6-1 on the season, including a record of 0-5-1 in NEHC play. Norwich moves to 6-1-0 (5-1-0 NEHC) with the win.

Following a scoreless first period, each team would look to break into the goal column in the second frame. Norwich had the best look of the period, when a Cadet forward got out on a breakaway with 7:30 to play in the period, but the shot missed high of the net to keep the game scoreless. Just one minute later, the Spartans had a chance to take the lead when Corbin Marcotte received a pass near the faceoff dot on the right side of the net, but his shot was blocked in front by a Norwich defender to keep the scoreless draw intact heading into the final frame.

Both offenses would come alive in the third period, as the two teams combined for a trio of goals. Castleton got on the board first when Smith forced a turnover deep in the Spartans' offensive zone and found Laking crashing the net for the easy goal.

Castleton had a chance to double its lead with five minutes remaining when Derek Gingera took a feed and had a seemingly open net to shoot at, but Norwich goalie Ty Reichenbach closed the door by making a sweeping glove save to keep the game at 1-0 in favor of the Spartans.

The Cadets would find the equalizer with 3:15 remaining when Kevin Salvucci found the back of the net on the power play on an assist from Tyler Piacentini. Just over one minute later, Norwich would strike again when Anthony Flaherty scored the eventual game winner on assists from Kevin Salvucci and Piacentini.

With time winding down, the Spartans pulled their goalie to gain an extra attacker. With the man-advantage, Castleton attempted six shots in the last 90 seconds, however they were unable to find the back of the net for the game-tying goal.

Wagner stopped 21 out of 23 shots in the contest for Castleton, while his counterpart Reichenbach made 25 stops for Norwich.

Castleton was unable to get the power play going in the loss, failing to convert on both of its opportunities. The Cadets went 1-4 on the power play in the contest, including the game-tying goal by Salvucci. The Spartans held a 26-23 shot advantage in the contest, while Norwich held a 30-26 advantage at the faceoff dot.

Castleton is back in action on Friday, Nov. 27, when they host Brockport in the Rutland Herald Invitational at Spartan Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.