RUTLAND, Vt. - Battling the second-ranked Norwich Cadets, the Castleton University men's hockey team fell 5-2 at Spartan Arena Saturday afternoon. The Spartans hung with the perennial power for the majority, but a Norwich-dominated third period would seal the deal.
The intrastate foes went into the final period with the visitors holding a 3-2 lead. Two power play goals would push the Cadets to an insurmountable three-goal advantage.
Norwich (3-0-2, 2-0-2 NEHC) struck first in the early portion of the opening period as Brett Ouderkirk tallied his first of two goals on the day. Castleton (1-5-0, 0-2-0 NEHC) had the answer, though, just over 10 minutes later as
Andrew Barber hammered home his first of the season to knot the game at 1-1. He received a cross-ice pass from
Zach Papapetros and sent a wrister on net, sneaking the puck past Norwich netminder Andrew Albano. Papapetros would go on to assist the other Spartan tally - he's raced out to six points in his first six games.
The 1-1 tie would hold until the Norwich power play, which proved to be lethal with four goals on seven chances, converted just over two minutes into the second period. The unit would score again with seven minutes remaining in the frame to take a 3-1 lead.
Anton Tarvainen kept Castleton within striking distance, netting his third of the season in the final two minutes of the period. The senior corralled a pass from Papapetros and skated into the offensive zone before sniping a wrister past the glove hand of Albano for his third of the year.
Leading 3-2, the Cadets sent 14 shots at
Kyle Alaverdy and found a pair of power play goals that would sink the hosts.
Alaverdy made 31 total saves, while Albano made 15, including nine in the second period that featured plenty of Spartan offense.
Castleton saw just four power play opportunities compared to the Cadets' seven and weren't able to convert.
The Spartans hit the road next weekend, starting with an NEHC matchup with Babson Friday, November 19. Puck drop at Babson Skating Center is set for 7 p.m.
