Catamounts Battle to Two Draws Against UML
Burlington, VT- This past weekend, the University of Vermont ACHA men's hockey team began its 2019-20 regular season at home against the UMass Lowell Riverhawks. Each squad emerged unscathed, with the Catamounts and Riverhawks battling to a 1-1 tie on Saturday and a 3-3 tie on Sunday.
Coming off respective winning seasons in 2018-19, UVM versus UML was bound to be a tightly-contested opening weekend. On Saturday, UMass Lowell opened the scoring on the powerplay, beating junior goaltender Monty Cunningham (Pittsford, NY) to take a lead into the first intermission. UVM would answer back in the second, as a hard forecheck by Luc Gordon (New York, NY) created a rebound opportunity for senior Beck Heil (Mars, PA). Heil made no mistake, depositing the puck on the backhand and knotting things up at one goal apiece. The 1-1 score would hold through overtime, with Cunningham stonewalling 34/35 UML shots on goal.
The two clubs reconvened for a 2:00 PM matinee on Sunday. The Riverhawks came out firing, beating Dana Marsh (Derby, VT) for two early scores. With just a few minutes left, senior captain Jack Levinsky (Burlington, VT) buried a powerplay feed from Harrison Naylor (Toronto, ONT) to cut the UMass Lowell lead in half. The second period would be UVM's opportunity to double-up on UML. Freshman forward Trevor Davis (Kenmore, NY) roofed a wicked wrist shot on a two-on-one rush to knot the score before a blast from Sam Pitonyak (Wynnewood, PA) gave the Catamounts a 3-2 lead. UML would tie the game at the end of a man-up opportunity, and the 3-3 score held for another draw. Marsh was equally impressive, denying 30/33 Riverhawk SOG.
UVM (0-0-2) will continue its four game homestand this coming weekend against Providence College (0-0-0). This is the first time the Catamounts and Friars have battled since 2016-17; UVM prevailed in both games of the home-and-home that season.
Game Details
Sat. 9/28, Providence @ UVM: 8:15 PM start time at Gutterson Fieldhouse in Burlington, VT
Sun. 9/29, Providence @ UVM: 2:00 PM start time at Gutterson Fieldhouse in Burlington, VT
Admission to UVM ACHA men's hockey games is always free.
