GREAT FALLS, Mont. – The University of Providence hockey team defeated the University of Montana 5-1 in the final game of the regular season Thursday night at the Great Falls Ice Plex.

Will Wright started off the scoring for the Argos, scoring five minutes into the game off an assist from Jakob Stevenson. Liam Carvalho added on with a goal of his own with 38 seconds left in the first period to take a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.

Cooper Page scored the team's lone goal in the second period off an assist from Levi Anderson. Wright scored again in the third period off another assist from Anderson, but the Griz responded with their own goal a minute later to make it 4-1. Wright completed the hat trick with a goal with 1:15 remaining on the clock to solidify the win.

"We started out playing really well," head coach Jeff Heimel said. "I thought we played the first ten minutes well and were doing some things that we had been working on. We had some inconsistent moments but for the most part we played well. There were some good learning experiences but at the end of the day we took care of business and competed hard."

Wright finished with a hat trick on the night. He has scored nine goals on the season, and has scored a goal in each of the last four games for the team.

"You could tell from the first shift that he was going to have a good game," Heimel said. "He came out ready to compete. Tonight showed us what he's capable of. It was fun to see him push himself a little bit. He can do that every game if he wants too. It was cool to see him show his skill and put some pucks in the net. He played great."

The game also marked the final home game of the season for the team, which will advance to the conference tournament next Thursday in Utah.

"It was bittersweet tonight," Heimel said. "At the same time, we have a lot of work to do still and we recognize that. It was the last home game for our seniors. At the same time we're not saying goodbyes yet. We've got a whole lot of hockey left to play. I think it's definitely going to be an exciting postseason."