BABSON PARK, Mass. – The Vermont State University Castleton men's hockey team saw a late advantage slip away as the Spartans were outlasted by Babson, 4-3, in overtime Friday night.
A goal and two assists by Bryce Irwin led the way for VTSU Castleton (4-6, 2-3 NEHC) in the offensive zone. First-year skaters Josef Vyvial and Cam Reid found paydirt on the power play, helping the squad go 2-for-3 on man-up chances. Zach Papapetros chipped in two helpers as Zach Trempner and Justin Stairs collected one dime apiece. Trempner also recorded a fine performance in the faceoff circle, going 15-for-20 (.750) on draws.
In his third appearance of the season, Josh Ward knocked away 40 shots issued by the Beavers (6-4-2, 5-0-1 NEHC) to set a new career high.
Babson commanded a 7-2 shooting edge to start the contest, but a 14th-minute penalty quickly swung momentum in favor of the Spartans. The 5-on-4 opportunity culminated in Vyvial flicking a wrist shot through traffic, tucking the puck inside the left pipe to put the visitors ahead, 1-0.
The Beavers evened the ledger in the opening minutes of the second stanza, but Castleton retook the lead 22 seconds later on a put-back by Irwin. The score became level once again midway through the period as Ward and the defense fought off a plethora of attempts to keep proceedings knotted at 2-2.
To kick off the third frame, the Spartans killed another shot-filled Babson power play and got a man advantage of their own soon after. Following a period of methodical puck movement, Papapetros fired a one-timer that was rebounded to a waiting Reid on the left side of the crease. The rookie defenseman poked it past the goalie, giving Castleton a 3-2 lead with 8:42 left on the clock. Babson pulled its netminder to add a skater in the final minutes, striking moments later to force overtime. Two minutes into OT, Matt Cormier slotted the golden goal to mark a Beaver triumph.
The Spartans head north for their final NEHC challenge of the calendar year tomorrow (December 2) at Southern Maine. Puck drop is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Olympic-size USM Ice Rink.
