AMHERST, MA – Though they put shot after shot on net, the Mammoths could not find the back of the against Wesleyan on Friday, Jan. 30. Facing the Cardinals for the second time this season after a 2-1 loss earlier in the campaign, the Mammoths looked to even the series on home ice. However, despite a strong shooting performance, the Cardinals got two goals on the man advantage, and played stout defense to blank Amherst, 2-0.

With the loss, the Mammoths slip to 9-7-2 on the year while the Cardinals improve to 7-11-0. Amherst is entering the home stretch of their season as the calendar turns to February, with every game mattering as they battle for NESCAC positioning. Next up is a trip to Maine to face Colby on Friday, Feb. 6. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
 
* The Mammoths started the contest strong, putting six shots on net in the game's first 10 minutes, forcing Wesleyan goaltender to keep his team level. That momentum carried into the second half of the period, with one particularly dangerous sequence of shots ending with a Vincent Velocci wrap-around attempt that was barely saved.

* Wesleyan got on the board against the run of play, with a tripping call against the Mammoths putting the Cardinals on the power play. They took advantage, setting up their offense and finding a wide-open Connor Sutherland at the bottom of the right faceoff circle for a one-timer that beat Andrew Palena and put Amherst down 1-0.
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* The second tally came in much the same way as the first. On the power play once again, Wesleyan cycled the puck down low and found a shooter in a very similar spot to the opener. The Cardinals' Daniel Lurie found a pocket of space in the right faceoff circle and rifled a shot home to double their lead.

* Now finding themselves in a 2-0 hole, Amherst ampped up the pressure. During one particularly dangerous stretch of play, Ben Ritter, Velocci, Cristobal Tola, Quinton Gove and Josh Burke all put shots on net within a 2-minute time frame. All five shots were saved by Wesleyan goalie Patrick McDevitt, whose performance may have won his team the game.

* The final period was much of the same, with Amherst peppering McDevitt with shots but being unable to find the back of the net and get within striking distance. Meanwhile, their defense held strong, holding Wesleyan to just 7 shots in the period.

* Down 2-0 with little time left, the Mammoths pulled Palena for an extra skater with just under 90 seconds to go. Though they took 4 shots during the 6-on-5, they could not convert, falling 2-0.
 
BY THE NUMBERS:
* The Mammoths outshot the Cardinals 43-21 in shots on goal and 76-30 in total attempts but could not find the back of the net.

* Velocci put all eight of his shots on net, and Jacob Pohl challenged the Wesleyan goalie five times of his own.

* Netminder Palena made 19 saves on the day.