NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Cadets opened their regular season home schedule against Rivier College on Tuesday, as they recorded the a solid 18-0 shutout against the Raiders on Howard Field.

Freshman Ian Thomas made his name well-known after his first collegiate game played on Howard Field, as the rookie collected five goals, an assist and three ground balls. Classmate Andrew Dustin netted a hat trick and picked up six grounders, while sophomore Nate Fortezzo grabbed seven ground balls, was 9-of-11 at the 'x' and earned two assists.

Tallying their first collegiate goals were freshman Zachary McMillian and Joey Ditommaso. Sophomore Arron Canarelli, along with senior Kevin Young, each netted their first goal of the season.

Sophomore Caleb Fournier made his first start in net, making two saves and earning an unprecedented win with the shutout performance.

With Easter around the corner, Rivier College was headed into exams and forced to leave many members of their team behind, as "student" comes first in "student-athlete". With a 10 vs. 10 match-up, the Raiders would be left with no subs.

Holding a 16-0 advantage at the half, the home team was able to hone in on some areas that they wanted to improve, while the Raiders continued to play an unrelenting defensive game on tired legs, allowing their opponents only two more goals for the remainder of the game.

In net for Rivier, Chris Benoit made nine saves. Danny Hooper and Carl Ghannah each got off three shots apiece, but were unable to find the back of the net.

The Cadets return to Howard field on Thursday for their second GNAC game of the week, as they'll face-off against Daniel Webster at 4 p.m.

-CADETS-