RUTLAND, Vt. – The Vermont State University Castleton men's hockey team piled on the goals in a shutout over SUNY Canton, 6-0, Friday night at Spartan Arena.
Zach Papapetros tossed in his first two scores of the year with an assist to boot. Josef Vyvial, Andrew Stefura, and Bryce Irwin also tallied three points apiece on a goal and two helpers. Also etching his name on the scoresheet was Jackson Edwards with his second dart of the campaign.
Between the pipes, Dominic Rodrigue had a magnificent 13-save performance for his first career clean sheet. The junior netminder also recorded his first-ever point with a secondary assist in the second period.
On faceoffs, VTSU Castleton (2-3-0) finished with an impeccable 39-14 record as Vyvial, Balint Mesterhazy, and Zach Trempner each logged ten or more wins.
The hosts began the game with heavy offense, putting four shots on net in as many minutes. A momentum swing to the Kangaroos (0-5-0) was short-lived as the Spartans broke through midway through the opening stanza when Papapetros and Irwin connected with Vyvial to take a 1-0 edge. The hosts continued knocking on the door but remained under control with a foul-free 20 minutes.
Castleton thrived in the faceoff circle to start the second frame, practically owning puck drops to keep possession in their end. A 31st-minute jam session in the crease was defended well by Canton goaltender Kelson Hooper, but it resulted in Irwin finding the back of the net to give the Spartans a multi-score lead. In the ensuing minutes, the green and white slammed home two power play goals off the sticks of Papapetros and Stefura to force a goalie change for the Roos.
The final stanza commenced very similarly to the previous two as the home team flooded its attacking zone. Jackson Kobelka saw a pass toward the blue line get tipped away and the Roos looked to break away, but Papapetros swiped the deflection and delivered a bullseye to notch his second of the contest. In a late four-on-four scenario resulting from coincidental penalties, Edwards snagged a puck on the defensive end and orchestrated a give-and-go with Stefura to perfection as the Toronto, Ontario native tallied the squad's seventh goal to lock up a non-conference victory.
After a weeklong break, the Spartans are back in New England Hockey Conference play at Spartan Arena next Friday, November 17 against New England College. Puck drop versus the Pilgrims is at 7 p.m.
