WINCHENDON, Mass. - Sophomore Evan Plunkett (Charlotte, N.C./Holderness School) picked up his school-record fifth career shutout to send the Saint Michael's College men's ice hockey team past first-place Franklin Pierce University, 3-0, on Friday evening during Northeast 10 Conference play at The Winchendon School's Jason Ritchie Ice Arena. Plunkett entered the night in a three-way tie for first place in school annals.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (4-4-3, 3-2-2 NE10), Franklin Pierce (6-5, 5-2 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Plunkett, 25 saves
• Senior Ashton Allain (Brentwood, Tenn./Walpole Express), 1 goal
• Senior Quinn McCarthy (Melrose, Mass./Holderness School), 1 goal
• Junior Brayden Naumann (Boston, Mass./Dexter Southfield School), 1 goal
• Junior Ty Bloom (Helena, Mont./Helena Bighorns), 1 assist, +2, 6-for-13 faceoffs
• Sophomore Jack Tuite (Shrub Oak, N.Y./Springfield Jr. Pics), 7-for-12 faceoffs
• Senior Nick Wracker (Columbia, S.C./Northeast Generals), 6-for-11 faceoffs
• First-year Marshall Thomas (Canton, Mass./Ironwood Lumberjacks), 5-for-6 faceoffs

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Junior Riley Mastowski, 32 saves

GAME FACTS

• Plunkett claimed his fifth shutout in his 26th career start, breaking a tie for the school record he shared with Dave Donzanti '15 and Tim Decker '20. Plunkett recorded a school-record four shutouts last year alone.
• Saint Michael's has won five straight from Franklin Pierce.
• The Purple Knights have yielded three goals or less in 10 of 11 games this season.

THE ACTION

• The Ravens held an 11-8 edge in shots during a scoreless opening stanza.
• During a power play early in the second period, Allain struck for the game-winner by blasting a shot from above the circles with 2:06 gone. First-year Aj Sacco (Middleton, Mass./Islanders Hockey Club) and sophomore Cole Douglas (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy) lent assists.
• McCarthy doubled the lead at 12:52, backhanding in a loose puck from near the left post after senior Kyle Lee's (Buffalo, N.Y./Finlandia University) shot from the left point hit junior Ben Baxter (Hyannis, Mass./Seahawks Hockey Club) out front.
• Plunkett made 10 third-period stops to secure the shutout, and Naumann scored on an empty net with 11 seconds remaining to pad the lead. Bloom and sophomore Sj LeComte (Port Monmouth, N.J./Wisconsin Rapids Riverkings) assisted.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Saturday at Franklin Pierce, 7 p.m.