MIDDLEBURY, Vt.- For the fourth straight season, the Norwich Men's Ice Hockey team took the ice in the LayerEight Shootout Championship game where they took on longtime intrastate rival Middlebury Saturday night.

From the get-go, the Cadets held the upper hand peppering Panther goaltender Andrew Heinze. Norwich kept pressing, but late in the period, it would be Middlebury who would break through with Jake Oblak sending a wrist shot through traffic to the back of the net to give the Panthers the lead after the first twenty despite being outshot 10-5.

The Cadets continued to press into the second period, including a chance by Anthony Domina (Odenton, Md.) that caught the post. Halfway through, Heinze would stop Colin Elliott (Peterborough, On.) to preserve the Middlebury lead. Norwich had many more chances, including a man advantage, but Heinze would not budge keeping the Panthers ahead despite shots being 11-4 in the period, and 21-9 for the game after the second.

Despite being the leading team, Middlebury would emerge from a carry over powerplay as the team with the upper hand in the third period putting Sami Molu (Toronto, On.) to the test. Desperation kicked in for the Cadets late in the period, as they pushed for the equalizer, but they could not solve Heinze. After pulling Molu for the extra attacker, Jin Lee would sink the empty netter to clinch a Panther victory. For Norwich, Molu and Devon Thibodeau (Pelham, On.) earned All-Tournament Team recognition.

The Cadets will return to New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) play next weekend when they travel to Gorham to take on Southern Maine for a two-game series that opens Friday Dec. 6 at 7 PM.