NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Norwich University men's ice hockey team suffered its first loss of the season, falling 6-4 to Babson College in a battle of two top-10 ranked teams on Saturday afternoon at Kreitzberg Arena. 

Babson's Thomas Kramer scored a natural hat trick, including the game-winning goal with 50 seconds left in the game to give the Beavers their first lead of the game. He then added an empty-net goal to complete the hat trick and score the last three goals, including the game-tying goal at the 9:43 mark of the third period. 

Norwich (6-1-3, 3-1-3 NEHC) got a pair of goals from Noah Williams (Cortland, N.Y.), while Bryan O'Mara (Syracuse, N.Y.) had a goal and an assist. Devon Becker (Langley British Columbia) and Logan vande Meerakker (Dieppe, New Brunswick) each had two assists. 

Norwich led three different times only to have Babson tie the game back up each and every time as the Beavers (8-1-2, 4-1-2 NEHC) held onto first place in the NEHC standings with the three points. 

Isaac Chapman (Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia) scored his first collegiate goal at the 8:40 mark of the first period to give Norwich a 1-0 lead. Patrick O'Neal (Indiana, Pa.) and Scott Swanson (Wheaton, Ill.) recorded assists on the goal. 

Babson scored just over a minute later to tie the game up at 1-1 with Jack Nisbet ripping a wrist shot over the glove of Norwich junior goalie Andrew Albano (Hamilton, Ontario) off an assist from John Corrigan. 

O'Mara scored on the power play off assists from vande Meerakker and Becker with a one-timer into a wide open net on the back door off a pretty pass from Becker from the point to give Norwich a 2-1 lead heading into the first intermission.   

Williams scored his first goal of the game at the 3:51 mark of the second period off assists from Clark Kerner (Kansas City, Kan.) and O'Mara to give Norwich a 3-1 lead early in the middle frame. 

Babson answered with two goals at the 5:19 mark and the 7:40 mark to tie things up at 3-3. 

Norwich retook the lead at the 7:49 mark of the third period with Williams tipping a shot from Becker into the net for his fourth goal of the season with vande Meerakker getting the secondary assist. 

Babson tied the game at the 9:43 mark of the third period with Kramer scoring his first goal of the game. 

Albano made 24 saves for Norwich to suffer his first collegiate loss. Nolan Hildebrand made 17 saves for Babson to pick up the win. 

Norwich will close the first semester schedule on Tuesday, Dec. 7 when the Cadets travel across Lake Champlain to take on Plattsburgh State in non-conference action.