Hockey Stays Undefeated in AHA Play with Win Over RIT

Friday, October 30

West Point, N.Y.

7 p.m.

Army West Point

4-1-0, 3-0-0

RIT

2-5-1, 1-2-0

Team	1	2	3	F
RIT	0	0	0	0
Army West Point	0	1	1	2

Nik Hong (19) celebrates scoring a goal against RIT at Tate Rink on Oct. 30, 2026

Photo by: Jon Malinowski

October 30, 2026 | Hockey

Box Score

WEST POINT, N.Y. – Army West Point hockey earned their fourth consecutive victory on Friday evening with a 2-0 victory over the RIT Tigers (2-5-1, 1-2-0 AHA) at Tate Rink. For Army (4-1-0, 3-0-0 AHA), junior JJ Cataldo secured his first shutout of the season and seventh of his career to move into a tie for eighth all-time in career shutouts. Additionally, sophomore Billy Batten and freshman Sean Gibbons both recorded their first career multi-point games.

Notables

Junior JJ Cataldo earned his seventh career shutout moving him into a tie for eight all-time in career shutouts with Gavin Abric '24.
Sophomore Billy Batten earned two points with an assist on senior Nik Hong's eventual game-winning goal and then a goal.
Army has now started 3-0-0 in conference play for the first time in program history.
Freshman Thomas Neu took a Black Knight lead and career high seven shots.
Freshman Cam Charron earned his first career assist in the victory.
The Black Knights have now won four of their last five games with a four-game win streak.
Freshman Sean Gibbons earned his first career multi-assist game.

By The Numbers

Goals: Two Tied (Nik Hong & Billy Batten), 1
Assists: Sean Gibbons (career high), 2
Points: Two Tied (Sean Gibbons & Billy Batten), 2
Blocks: Multiple Tied (Liam Chapman, Cam Charron, Thomas Quast), 2
Shots: Thomas Neu (career high), 2
+/-: Multiple Tied (Sean Gibbons, Nik Hong, Billy Batten), 2
Saves: JJ Cataldo, 23
Faceoffs: Nik Hong, 11

How It Happened

The Black Knights and the RIT Tigers were unable to find the back of the net in the first period with the Black Knights outshooting the Tigers by a margin of 13 to 6 in the opening frame.
Army broke thru in the opening minutes of the second period at 1:21 with senior Nik Hong's second goal of the season. Sophomore Billy Batten collected the loose puck along the boards in the defensive end and chipped it out and up to Hong. Hong quickly passed it to freshman Sean Gibbons creating the 2 on 1 entering the attacking third. Gibbons skated the puck into the zone and passed it across to Hong at the other circle. Hong took a shot that beat the RIT goalie up high to make it 1-0.
Neither team was able to find the net for the rest of the second period with the Black Knights winning the shot battle in the middle frame by a margin of 14 to 8.
At 15:22 in the third period, Batten added the eventual insurance goal to make it 2-0. Freshman Cam Charron started the breakout from the defensive zone and passed it up to Gibbons in the neutral zone. Gibbons dumped the puck in where it was collected by Batten on the opposite boards at the hashes. Batten made a move beating two RIT defenders and then deked out a third defender and the goalie along the bottom of the circle and took a backhand shot that beat the RIT goalkeeper glove side high.

Up Next
The Black Knights will return to Tate Rink tomorrow Saturday, Oct. 31 at 4 p.m. to take on the RIT Tigers looking for their second consecutive sweep in AHA play. Fans can purchase tickets to attend Saturday's game HERE.

Follow the Black Knights
Follow Army Hockey on X @ArmyWP_Hockey and on Instagram @armywp_hockey Fans can also like Army West Point Athletics on Facebook and learn more about hockey and other programs at goarmywestpoint.com

Army West Point Athletic Association, Inc. (AWPAA)
AWPAA is an IRS code 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established to execute the United States Military Academy's intercollegiate athletics program. AWPAA is led by a board of directors that provides guidance to the director of athletics, who serves as the primary advisor to the USMA Superintendent and the USMA leadership on all NCAA operations. The AWPAA mission is to recruit, educate, train and inspire leaders of character who are committed to the Army values through an extraordinary Division I athletic experience.
––www.goarmywestpoint.com—