FINAL SCORE: Vermont 16, Bryant 12
Smithfield, R.I – Tristan Whitaker and Brock Haley each had four points as Vermont (5-7, 3-2 AE) defeated Bryant (7-4, 3-2 AE) on Saturday afternoon in Smithfield. 
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"Very proud of the Cats today on a great team win," said head coach Chris Feifs. "We needed to step up and I thought especially in the cage and at the X we did just that. This league is always a dogfight and we must get prepared for another tough road game next week." 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Griffin Fenech opened the scoring 34 seconds in when he took it himself to score unassisted. 
• Bryant then went on a three-goal run through two goals from Kevin Groeninger and Dawson Reilly. 
• Whitaker stopped the Bulldog's run when he scored unassisted with four minutes to go in the first quarter. 
• John Tomsheck responded two minutes later to extend the lead back to two. 
• Nathan Laliberte took the opening faceoff of the second quarter himself to give Bryant a three-goal lead. 
• Whitaker picked up his second of the game a minute later when he beat Scott Einarson low after spinning around his defender. 
• Haley got his first of the game when he scored 40 seconds later off an assist from Harrison Josloff. 
• Jack Fitch recorded his first career goal when he found himself in space off a clear to tie the game at five all five minutes into the second quarter. 
• Cullen Decker got his fifth goal of the season when he scored from deep off an assist from Josloff with eight minutes gone in the second. 
• Haley got his second when he scored off a wraparound with no angle to extend the Cats' lead 90 seconds after Decker. 
• Mason Drouin ended the Vermont five-goal run as he scored with four minutes to go in the half. 
• Max Frattaroli added two in 40 seconds to push the Cat's lead back to three. 
• Charlie Pope then added his 32nd goal of the season on the man-up off an assist from Whitaker to make it a four-goal game. 
• Whitaker completed his hat trick halfway through the third quarter, scoring off a pass from Reiter to make it a five-goal game. 
• Frattaroli completed his hat trick when he scored off an assist from Haley with just under three minutes to go in the third quarter. 
• Five seconds later, Walter Zhao took it himself to get his first career goal and make it 13-6.
• Bryant went on a two-goal run through goals from Aidan Goltz and Johnny Hackett.
• Pope restored the six-goal lead when he scored under three minutes into the fourth. 
• Pope scored his hat trick when he scored on the man-up off the assist from Haley with five minutes left in the fourth.
• Hackett, Goltz, and LaLiberte went on a three-goal run to cut the deficit to four. 
• Fitch picked up his second of the game when he scored on the empty net with three minutes to go in the game. 
• Groeninger recorded a short-handed goal when he scored with just over two minutes left. 

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 

• The win marks the Catamount's first-ever win in Smithfield. 
• Zhao went 13-19 with eight ground balls and his first career goal at the faceoff spot. 
• Frattaroli now has hattricks in four of his last six games after he recorded another one today. 
• Pope recorded his sixth game of three goals or more this year with his hattrick today. 
• With three man-up goals today, Vermont has achieved 20 in the year, the third time they have achieved this mark under Coach Feifs. 

 
WHO'S NEXT
Vermont heads to Lowell next weekend to take on UMass Lowell in their final road game of the season. The game begins at 5 p.m. and will be streamed live from Cushing Field on AmericaEast. TV.