ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Sacred Heart University men's ice hockey team could not have asked for a better start to the 2025-26 season, concluding a weekend sweep of RIT with a convincing 6-1 victory on Saturday at the Tigers' Gene Polisseni Center in Rochester, N.Y. 

With tonight's win, the Pioneers improve to 2-0-0 in Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) play for the first time since the 2022-23 season. 

Records: 
SHU: 2-0-0, 2-0-0 AHA
RIT: 0-2-0, 0-2-0 AHA

How It Happened:
For the second straight game, the Pioneers opened the scoring, capitalizing on a scattered RIT defense after a SHU breakaway. Jake Hewitt brought the puck into the zone and had a one-on-one chance against the opposing goaltender, but found the goalie's shoulder. With the rebound loose in the slot, Jeremi Tremblay sent a pass to Mikey Adamson, who saw his first shot get blocked before burying the rebound square into an empty net.  

Unfortunately for the Pios, it took RIT 3:13 to even the score. After a SHU turnover in its zone, the Tigers swung a pass from the right dot to the left, with Mason Croucher sniping the top-left corner to even the score at 1-1 at 10:11. 

However, SHU was ready with an answer, leaving the first period with the lead for the second straight night. This time, Felix Trudeau got into the mix, scoring his first goal of the season at 13:52 to make it 2-1 Pioneers. Hewitt sparked the offense again, bringing the puck into the zone, where he found Stephane Huard. Huard used a quick stick to move by one defenseman, drawing another in before feeding Trudeau for the goal at the doorstep. 

It didn't take the Pioneers long to keep the train going in the second period, extending the lead to 3-1 by 3:37. Following a RIT turnover in the neutral zone after a Tigers' pass bounced off one of their own skates, Ethan Wolthers found a streaking Vitaly Levyy, who went five-hole for his first collegiate goal. 

The SHU lead grew to 4-1 by the end of the second period, as Noah Ellis scored his first goal as a Pioneer at 18:26. The defenseman got free at the blueline, stepping into a wrister from the slot that found the bottom-right corner. 

The Pioneers' scoring did not stop in the third, as SHU scored twice in a span of 1:04 to build a 6-1 advantage. Huard netted his second of the weekend at 4:23 off a feed from John Driscoll. Ray Fust tallied the last goal of the game at 5:27, cleaning up a rebound by going bar down right in front of the goaltender. 

A five-goal lead was more than enough of a cushion for Ajeet Gundarah, as the sophomore put on another excellent showing between the pipes. The Richmond, British Columbia, native saved 27 of the 28 shots he faced. He finished the weekend with 49 saves for a .980 save percentage and a 0.50 goals against average. 

Notes:

• SHU is 2-0-0 for the first time since 1996-97.
• The Pios last started AHA play 2-0-0 in 2022-23. 
• Adamson, Trudeau, Fust, Levyy and Ellis all scored their first goals of the season. 
• Adamson's goal gives him 50 career points (17-32-50). 
• Levyy's goal is the first of his collegiate career in 10 appearances. 
• Ellis and Fust both scored their first goals as Pioneers.  
• Huard scored a goal in both games this weekend. 
• Huard and Levyy both finished tonight with their first multi-point games.
• SHU has not scored six goals since its 8-2 win over Yale in the opening game of the 2025 CT Ice Tournament on Jan. 24, 2025. 
• The Pioneers finished the weekend a perfect 8-for-8 on the penalty kill, killing off a 1:52 5-on-3 chance tonight.

Up Next:
Sacred Heart returns to Martire Family Arena for the last time this month on Saturday, Oct. 18, to play Stonehill at 5 p.m. Prior to the game, SHU will host its second Hocktoberfest celebration at 4 p.m. on the patio in front of the arena.