CLINTON, NY – Men's hockey uses a quick start to put away Hamilton 3-1 Friday night. Wesleyan scored three first period goals and let their defense do the heavy lifting in the latter two periods to hold onto a 3-1 lead, snapping a streak of six games without a win. These two teams met earlier in the year, with the Cardinals scoring a late overtime goal to shock the Continentals 4-3 back at Spurrier-Snyder Rink in early December. Wesleyan wins their first game since January 8^th, looking to finish strong in conference play. They improve to 6-8-2 (5-4-2 NESCAC), while Hamilton drops to 5-7-0 (4-6-0 NESCAC).
 
HIGHLIGHTS:

• The rink was rocking in Clinton, NY with the students back on campus at Hamilton, but the few hundred that showed up were quickly quieted by three first period goals by the Cardinals
•  The first came on a power play after a tripping call on Sam Thompson put him in the penalty box midway through the 1^st period. Matt Zandi '22 and Wiggle Kerbrat '23 worked the puck to Emmet Powell '23 whose one-timer found the back of the net to give the Cardinals a 1^st period lead
• Just three minutes later Wesleyan struck again. This time they were able to force a turnover in their attacking zone which fell right into the lap of Uri Lurie '24 who beat the Continentals' goalie five-hole to add to the early lead
• The Cardinals weren't done in the first, scoring for a third time less than a minute later. Tyler Levine '22 stole the puck on one end, and beat a Hamilton defenseman in the neutral zone to create a two on one with him and Owen Sweet '25. Sweet took the pass to the opposite side of the net and scored giving Wesleyan a 3-0 1^st period lead. The Cardinals outshot the Continentals 16-3 in the 1st
•  Both teams got their chances in the 2^nd period, tying at 15 in shots. Hamilton had the only power play of the period, but could not produce a shot during it
• In the 3^rd, the Cardinals went on the defense trying to preserve their three-goal lead. Hamilton outshot them 11-4 in the period, including a power play goal with just over six minutes remaining by Jeremy Smith who took a slap shot with traffic in front of Marc Smith '24 to cut the lead to two. The game would end 3-1 in favor of the Cards

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Emmet Powell scored his team-leading 5^th goal of the season
• Matt Zandi and Wiggle Kerbrat add their 7^th assists of the year
• Wesleyan ends their six-game streak without a win
• Jake Lachance '23 blocks three shots and is now tied for the team lead with 15
• Marc Smith makes a career high 28 saves

 
UP NEXT:
Wesleyan looks to continue their winning ways Sunday at Amherst at 3 pm.