BOX SCORE

BRUNSWICK, Maine - Bowdoin first-year Daniel Weiniger collected his first collegiate hat trick to lead the Polar Bear men's ice hockey team to a 7-1 win over Castleton State on Saturday afternoon at Watson Arena. The 14th-ranked Polar Bears improve to 5-0-0 this season while the Spartans drop to 1-4-1 overall this season.

Weiniger got Bowdoin going with his fifth goal of the young season. A shot by Kyle Shearer-Hardy from the point deflected off a Castleton defender and to the waiting stick of Weiniger, who snapped a shot through the five-hole to give the Polar Bears an early lead. Minutes later, Kyle Hanson played the puck on the boards to Weiniger, who drew Spartan netminder Seth McNary out of position and fed Graham Sisson on the far post for a tap-in goal to make it 2-0.

Shearer-Hardy added to the Bowdoin lead early in the second frame, wristing a shot from between the circles that went top-shelf to make it 3-0. The Spartans got on the board on the powerplay at the midway point of the period, as Josh Harris knocked home a loose puck in front to close the gap. Bowdoin regained their three-goal cushion on a slapshot from Weiniger above the right circle late in the frame and carried a 4-1 edge into the second intermission.

Weiniger closed out the hat trick in the third frame, driving down the middle through traffic and knocking home his own rebound to give the hosts a 5-1 edge with eight minutes to play. Brendan Reich and Brian Fry added late goals to close out the scoring.

McNary made 34 stops for Castleton while Nerland earned 20 saves between the pipes for Bowdoin. The Spartans were called for 11 penalties, leading to three Bowdoin powerplay goals. The Polar Bears have outscored their opponents 23-7 through five games this year.

Photos courtesy of Brian Beard and Creative Images Photography.