DULUTH, Minn. – Sophomore Gianni Vitali and freshman Ty Enns have each earned All-NCHA recognition announced the league office Tuesday.
In his first season as a Sabre, Vitali (Grand Rapids, Mich.) had a breakout season to earn All-NCHA honors as a forward. Vitali led the Sabre offense scoring 16 goals and 18 points for a total of 34 points with 26 of his points coming in NCHA games. He posted nine multi-point games this season with a career-high four points coming in the opener against Concordia Wisconsin, all assists. Vitali scored five of his goals short-handed to lead the conference with two of his short-handed goals coming in the series-opening 4-0 win over then-ranked No. 15 St. Norbert. The performance was only the fifth game in program history where a skater scored multiple short-handed goals. Vitali had an especially strong second half of the season where he recorded 25 points over 18 games including a stretch where he had at least one point in 15 of the first 16 games in the second half.
Enns (Cartwright, Man.) had a strong opening season in a Marian sweater earning him a spot on the All-NCHA freshman team. He finished the season with the second-highest point total on the squad scoring 11 goals with 13 assists for 24 points where 20 of his points came in conference action. Enns currently ranks 14th in the nation, fifth in the NCHA, for freshman scoring with 0.92 points per game. On the season, he had eight multi-point games and his second half of the season saw him post 17 points in his first 14 games. Enns was also able to record his first career hat trick in the opener against Concordia Wisconsin and went on to earn NCHA offensive player of the week honors after finishing the weekend with five points.
The full all-conference teams and press release from the NCHA can be viewed at https://www.nchahockey.org/sports/mice/2019-20/releases/1920M_ALLNCHA.
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