CASTLETON, Vt. – The Vermont State University Castleton men's hockey team faced off against Keene State. The teams tied in regulation 1-1 and went into a shootout, where Keene claimed the victory 2-1.
Keene and Castleton took the ice for the first time in program history at Spartans Arena Saturday night.
The Spartans tallied the first goal of the game in 4:46.
Aiden Robson played a high-flying puck up the ice toward
Bryce Irwin. Irwin tapped the puck mid-air towards
Emmett McHardy who carried it forward and slid the puck across to
Andrew Stefura for a one-time shot that connected with the back of the net.
Castleton controlled most of the first period with their passing and high-energy gameplay. They outshot the Owls 16-9 in the first period alone.
Halfway through the opening period, each team had a man in the penalty box that resulted in a 4-on-4 play. Keene's penalty expired and in just four seconds being on the powerplay, Marcus Chrisafideis found a loose puck in the Spartans' zone and was able to slip by the last defender and bury his opportunity to tie the game at one.
The two teams battled it out through the next two periods but neither side would be able to find the go-ahead goal. Overtime commenced and was highlighted by
Josh Ward, who made three spectacular saves in an 11-second timeframe to keep the Spartans alive. Ward finished the game with 24 saves in his season debut. Keene's Ben Skelton provided a strong 39 saves for the Owls.
With no overtime winner, the teams entered the league's new format of heading to a shootout.
Cam Reid stepped up as Castleton's first shooter but would be saved but Skelton. Chrisafideis took Keene's first attempt but was denied by Ward. First-year
Luke Chakrabarti took Castleton's second shot and scored to put the Spartans up 1-0.
Keene answered Chakrabarti's goal with one of their own to tie the score. Stefura went third but was unable to connect on a shot, giving Keene the opportunity to seal the deal. Kyle Gonzalez stepped up for the Owls finished his chance to win the shootout 2-1 and gave the Owls their first win in program history.
VTSU Castleton returns to action Friday, November 8 at 7 p.m. where they host No. 1 Hobart College.
