With weekend wins over Old Dominion (ODU) and arch rival Virginia Commonwealth (VCU), the University of Richmond Spiders Hockey club continued their hot start, moving to a perfect 4-0-0 mark on the young season. Though the two games were quite opposite in nature, one thing was obvious over the entirety of the weekend's 120 minutes of play: the Spiders were not to be outworked. 

Friday night, Richmond hosted ODU in the Atlantic South division-opener, and quickly set the tempo of the game to their liking by moving the puck and playing with energy in all three zones. James Henry ('17) opened the scoring - and added two assists along the way - as the Spiders skated to a five-goal victory. 

Trevor McGee ('19), who also had a goal and two assists, provided key special teams work, both on the man advantage and the penalty kill. Michael Blaum ('17) remained a driver of the team's strong possession game and scored a goal. And Defenseman Sam Blakley ('17) set the tone physically, opening the game with several big hits and controlling the defensive zone throughout. 

"I think we met expectations, we all came out working hard," Blakley said. 

"We don't think about who we're playing as much as trying to play our own game and really come out strong," he continued. "I think we did that well tonight."

Richmond Head Coach Jason Block liked the physicality his team displayed early and often. 

"Physically, this was our most complete game," said Block. "Effort and pace and puck movement seem to be constants with us, but tonight we brought some pop, some punch on top of that. The team had fun with it, and played pretty well."

"Did a good job controlling the pace of play," said Nick Brackenridge ('19), who contributed another goal in addition to strong work at the faceoff dots and on the penalty kill. 

Added Brackenridge: "We didn't let them take it to us, we started strong, and carried it through the whole game."

Ryan Martin ('18) had a goal and an assist, Ben Napierala ('18) and RJ Messineo ('20) each added a goal apiece, and Jared Deperio ('19) had an assist. Michael Collins ('17) got the win in net. 

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Saturday's game with VCU was a much closer contest, as it tends to be when the two teams face off. The schools - whose campuses are separated by approximately 7 miles - kept the rivalry as feisty as ever in a game that included 36 combined penalty minutes and a great crowd at the Ice Zone. 

Fatigue from the ODU game carried over for Richmond, as a sluggish start saw them concede the first goal to an energized VCU team about five minutes into the game. 

But instead of deflating or soliciting excuses, the team stepped up as a collective unit and took control of the game from that point forward. The physicality they established in Friday night's contest was even more prominent against the Rams, as the Spiders were finishing every check, playing heavy on the forecheck, and forcing turnovers in the offensive and neutral zones. 

Nick Brackenridge ('19) found his way onto the scoresheet yet again, as he scored the tying goal halfway through the first period and assisted on the insurance marker that Michael Blaum ('17) scored late in the third. James Henry ('17) delivered what was the eventual game winner, with just over a minute to play in a nasty second period that saw plenty of skirmishes and a handful of penalties both ways.

Goalie Ben Napierala ('18) turned out to be the big story of this particular show. In addition to withstanding the initial barrage from VCU to open the game, Napierala was electric to the end, with a handful of highlight-reel saves, great lateral movement, and strong rebound control.  

"I thought Nap played really well," said Trevor McGee ('19), who was a force on both sides of the puck for the Spiders. 

"I thought we showed perseverance," McGee added,  "battling some fatigue and grinding it out. It was a big weekend for everybody.

Assistant coach David VanDeveer said "it was the battle we all expected. You knew, being a rivalry game, it was going to be a hard fight, and we definitely stepped up to the challenge tonight." 

Added Assistant Coach John Chukayne: "Really fun. Real good game, hard fought, and it was great to see the guys come out and get the job done."

Ryan Martin ('18) and Andy Casamento ('19) each added an assist. The Spiders now shift their attention to Liberty University, who comes to Richmond the weekend of October 15th for a pair of games with the Spiders and VCU.