ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Seven different players scored for the Manhattanville College men's hockey team as the Valiants earned a home playoff game with a 7-1 thrashing of Nazareth College in a United Collegiate Hockey Conference matchup on Friday night at Bill Gray's Regional Iceplex.
 
With the victory, Manhattanville (12-7-5, 9-4-2 UCHC) can finish no lower than fourth in the UCHC standings. As a result, the Valiants will host a UCHC Tournament first round game on Wednesday as either the third or fourth seed, with the opponent still to be determined.
 
Seven different players scored and 14 players had at least one point for the Valiants, led by freshman Taylor Bommarito (Sterling Heights, Mich./Charlotte Rush (USPHL)) with a game- and season-high three points on a goal and two assists. Junior Oscar Arfelt (Stockholm, Sweden/Connecticut Oilers (EHL)) added a goal and an assist as well to lead a very balanced Valiant scoring attack.
 
Arfelt put the visitors ahead at the 7:12 mark of the opening period with his fourth goal of the year, but the lead lasted only 51 seconds before Oliver Janzen tied the game for Nazareth (9-13-2, 6-8-1 UCHC). However, junior Jeff Beck (Broomall, Pa./Philadelphia Junior Flyers (EHL)) gave Manhattanville a lead it would not relinquish with 9:54 remaining by potting his first goal of the season. The Valiants outshot the Golden Flyers 12-5 over the first 20 minutes of play.
 
Up by a goal entering the second period, Manhattanville scored the only three tallies of the middle stanza to take a commanding four-goal lead into the third. Junior Cory Anderson (Bakersfield, Calif./Notre Dame Hounds (SJHL)) continued his recent hot streak, scoring for the sixth time in the last five games only 45 seconds into the stanza to give him 10 goals on the year. Classmate Jared Martin (Fort Qu'Appelle, Sask./Notre Dame Hounds (SJHL)) followed less than four minutes later to push the Valiant advantage to three, while senior Kevin Loppatto (Plano, Texas/Springfield Pics (USPHL)) made the score 5-1 at the 10:25 mark of the period.
 
Bommarito and junior Matt Lippa (Richmond Hill, Ont./Oakville Blades (OJHL)) added third-period tallies to complete the scoring. Bommarito's ninth goal of the year, coming 6:46 into the frame, ties him for the most goals scored by a Valiant freshman since Mark Rivera '14 potted 10 in 2011-12. Lippa's goal with 8:34 left gives him 15 in back-to-back seasons, becoming the first Valiant to record 15 or more in consecutive seasons since All-American Mickey Lang '11 in 2009-10 and 2010-11, and the first to do so before his senior year since all-time leading scorer Jason Murfitt '08 as a sophomore and junior.
 
Junior Tyler Feaver (Whitby, Ont./Whitby Fury (OJHL)) turned aside 27 of the 28 shots he faced to pick up his eighth win of the season, as the Valiants outshot the Golden Flyers 28-27.
 
Manhattanville will close out the regular season tomorrow night at #10/10 Utica beginning at 7 p.m.