Box Score MIDDLEBURY, VT. – Behind a five-goal third period, the Amherst College men's ice hockey team put in another impressive offensive performance on tonight at Middlebury's Chip Kenyon Arena.

Entering the final weekend of the 2024-25 regular season, the Mammoths needed all the points they can get to keep their NESCAC tournament hopes alive. Playing on the road versus the Panthers, a team that they beat 4-1 earlier this season, Amherst made it 11 goals in two games with a 7-3 victory.

With the win, the Mammoths improve to 10-11-2, while Middlebury drops to 11-11-1 overall. Tomorrow, Amherst will play their final game of the regular season, facing bitter rival Williams on the road in Williamstown. Puck drop is scheduled for 3 p.m.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
 
* The Mammoths sustained the offensive momentum they gained from their last game versus Tufts, scoring just four minutes into the contest. After a face-off win by the Mammoths, Andrew Carmody collected the puck in the neutral zone and skated back behind his own blue line. This created space for Matt Toporowski, who skated onto a perfectly roped pass from Carmody. Toporowski found a wide-open Josh Burke with a cross-ice pass, and the junior fired a laser from just above the left face-off dot that found the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.  
 
* Amherst doubled their lead 2:41 later with a perfectly executed rush. Ben Ritter bounced a perfect breakout pass off the wall to Burke as he skated into the offensive zone. Burke continued toward the red line, where he laid a cut-back pass in front of the Middlebury net. Vincent Velocci finished the job with ease, tapping the puck home from point-blank range to make it 2-0.
 
* Middlebury fired back at the 11:51 mark after an unlucky break. Andrew Palena was unable to find the puck off a powerful centering pass, which bounced off the back of his skate and into the net; but nonetheless, the Mammoths entered the second frame with a 2-1 advantage.
 
* The Panthers took the lead in the second with two goals in the final six minutes. On the first, the initial shot from the point went wide and was collected by a Middlebury forward who passed to a wide-open teammate for a one-timer. The second came in similar fashion, with a pass across the face of goal netted at the doorstep put the Mammoths down 3-2.
 
* That lead didn't last long, as the Mammoths' third period flurry flipped the game on its head to seal the win. The first goal came just 59 seconds into the frame. Carmody won the puck back in the defensive zone and skated up the ice and tapped it to his left to Burke, who sent a tape-to-tape pass for a Toporowski rocket that tied it at 3-3.
 
* Amherst netted their second with 14:37 left in the game. Magnus Gadowsky executed a perfect forecheck and was able to slide the puck behind him to Zachary Murray. Murray found Carmody at the point, and the junior ripped a slap shot for the 4-3 lead.
 
* The Mammoths made it three with a tally from Ben Kuzma with 7:08 to go. Zach Jesse settled the puck at the blueline on the right side and slid it into the high slot. Oliver Flynn touched it onto the back post for Kuzma, who potted it from close range to restore the two-goal advantage.
 
* Kuzma scored once more four minutes later off a rebound from a Bobby Luca wrap-around attempt, and Burke got an empty netter to seal the 7-3 win.
 
BY THE NUMBERS:
 
* Three different Mammoths notched four points on the night: Kuzma and Burke each netted twice, while Carmody tallied a goal and two assists.
 
* Amherst outshot the Panthers 73-55 overall and 39-39 in shots on goal, including 26-14 with 15-5 advantage in shots on goal in the decisive final period.
 
* Palena made 26 saves in the victory.