UTICA, N.Y. – Utica College, ranked 13th in the latest USCHO.com Div. III National Poll and 14th in the latest D3hockey.com national rankings, rolled past the Manhattanville College men’s hockey team by a 5-1 score in ECAC West Conference action on Saturday night at the Utica Memorial Auditorium.
Sophomore Bryan Platt (Trumbull, Conn./Springfield Pics (USPHL)) scored his first goal of the season to give Manhattanville (1-3-0, 0-2-0 ECAC West) its lone goal of the evening, while four different players found the net for Utica (4-0-0, 2-0-0 ECAC West). Jarrod Fitzpatrick led the Pioneers with two goals, while Roman Ammirato and Mikhail Bushinski both had a goal and two assists.
Utica opened the scoring on just the third shot on goal of the night, as Fitzpatrick netted his first of the season only 100 seconds into the game. That was the only goal of the frame despite two power-play chances for both sides, as the teams were even at 11 shots apiece after 20 minutes.
The Valiants fired four of the first five shots on goal in the middle frame, but again it was the Pioneers that found the net courtesy of Luc Boby’s breakaway score at the 4:43 mark. Manhattanville got one back with 7:06 left in the middle stanza when Platt finished off feed from sophomore Marco Ferraro (Toronto, Ont./St. Michael’s Buzzers (OJHL)) after senior co-captain Nolan Marshall (Drumheller, Alta./Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL)) forced a turnover in the defensive zone.
The home team regained its two-goal lead less than two minutes into the third period on an Ammirato power-play score. Bushinski added a tally with 5:59 to go and Fitzpatrick bookended the scoring with 1:12 remaining in the final frame.
Manhattanville finished the game with an advantage in shots, putting 31 on the net of Henry Dill but only getting one past the UC junior. Sophomore Tyler Feaver (Whitby, Ont./Whitby Fury (OJHL)) made 25 saves on 30 shots for the Valiants.
Manhattanville will play its first games of the season on home ice next weekend, beginning with a Friday night ECAC West clash with nationally ranked Hobart College beginning at 7 p.m. at Playland.
