PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Plymouth State University men's ice hockey senior Donte' DiPonio (Trenton, Mich.) signed a professional contract with the Quad City Storm of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL) earlier this week.
 
DiPonio made his professional debut Thursday night, registering an assist in the Storm's 5-2 win over the Evansville Thunderbolts.
 
Quad City is based in the Quad Cities area of Illinois and Iowa and plays its home games at Vibrant Arena at the MARK in downtown Moline, Ill. The Storm currently sit in eighth place in the ten-team SPHL, with the top eight teams advancing to the postseason. Quad City has 48 points, just two points behind the Knoxville Ice Bears for seventh. The league's top three teams have already secured postseason berths.
 
Now in its 21st season, the SPHL is the fourth-highest level of professional ice hockey in North America. The league, headquartered in Huntersville, N.C., consists of teams based in Pelham, Ala., Evansville, Ind., Huntsville, Ala., Knoxville, Tenn., Macon, Ga., Pensacola, Fla., Peoria, Ill., Roanoke, Va., Fayetteville, N.C., and Moline.
 
DiPonio, a 5-9 defenseman, served as a captain for the Panthers this season, finishing with 12 points on two goals and ten assists. He boasted a +10 rating and led the Panthers with 25 blocked shots. Both of his goals came in a 5-2 win at Worcester State in mid-January, which included the power play game-winner.
 
DiPonio joins classmate Ethan Stuckless (Conception Bay South, Newfoundland) in the professional ranks. Stuckless signed with the Fayetteville Marksmen, also of the SPHL, two weeks ago.
 
Plymouth State secured its eighth-straight MASCAC regular season title but was upset in the MASCAC Tournament quarterfinals, closing the season with a 19-7-0 record.