NCAA Tourney Bound!
March 24, 2003
North Dakota is No. 3 Seed; St. Cloud State, Minnesota State are No. 4 Seeds; Golden Gophers Begin Defense of National Championship; WCHA Owns Record 32 NCAA Titles; 72,786 Attend 2003 Kellogg's WCHA Final Five in Saint Paul; Five WCHA Teams Ranked Among Nation's Top 15; CC's Sejna and Preissing, UND's Parise Named as Hobey Baker Memorial Award Finalists; WCHA's Non-Conference Mark at 52-23-8 (.675); WCHA Home Attendance Reaches Record 1,511,991!
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MADISON, Wisc. Five Western Collegiate Hockey Association-member teams led by regular season and MacNaughton Cup champion Colorado College and playoff and Broadmoor Trophy champion Minnesota have earned berths in the 16-team 2003 NCAA Tournament, which gets underway this coming weekend with four, four-team regionals. Also earning berths in the championship field, announced on ESPN on Sunday evening, were North Dakota, St. Cloud State and Minnesota State.
The Tigers (29-6-5) earned the No. 1 seed for the Midwest Regional at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, set for March 29-30. CC will take on No. 4 Wayne State (21-16-2) at 12 Noon ET on Saturday while the other game will match No. 2 Maine (24-9-5) vs No. 3 Michigan (28-9-3) at 3:30 pm ET. The Midwest Regional championship game is set for Sunday at 3:00 pm ET.
The defending national champion Golden Gophers (24-8-9), who defeated Colorado College, 4-2, last Saturday (March 22) night in the championship game of the 2003 Kellogg's WCHA Final Five at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minn., are the No. 1 seed in the West Regional at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis, Minn., set for March 28-29. Minnesota will faceoff against No. 4 seed Mercyhurst (22-12-2) at 7:30 pm CT on Friday night while the other game will match No. 3 seed North Dakota (26-11-5) against No. 2 Ferris State (30-9-1) at 4:00 pm CT. The West Regional championship game will be contested on Saturday at 4:00 pm CT.
WCHA members St. Cloud State and Minnesota State, meanwhile, will head east for first-round NCAA action. The Huskies (17-15-5) are the No. 4 seed in the Northeast Regional, set for March 28-29 at Centrum Center in Worcester, Mass. SCSU will take on No. 1 seed New Hampshire (25-7-6) at 7:30 pm ET on Friday. The first game on Friday will have No. 2 seed Boston University (24-13-3) taking on No. 3 seed Harvard (22-9-2) at 4:00 pm ET. The Northeast Regional championship game will commence at 8:00 pm ET on Saturday.
The Mavericks (20-10-10) will be the No. 4 seed in the East Regional, set for March 29-30 at Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, R.I. Minnesota State will faceoff against No. 1 seed Cornell (28-4-1) at 12 Noon ET on Saturday, with the second game featuring No. 2 seed Boston College (23-10-4) against No. 3 Ohio State (25-12-5) at 3:30 pm ET. The East Regional championship game will faceoff on Sunday at 12 Noon ET.
Following next weekend's four regionals, the four winning teams will advance to the 2003 NCAA Men's Frozen Four, set for April 10-12 at HSBC Arena in Buffalo, N.Y. In the two Frozen Four national semi-finals on Thursday, April 10, the Northeast Regional champion will be matched against the East Regional champion while the West Regional champion will take on the Midwest Regional champion. The two games will be at 12 Noon and 6:00 pm ET, with the order of the games TBA. On Saturday, April 12, the national championship game will get underway at 7:00 pm ET.
2003 NCAA Regionals
Northeast Regional - March 28-29 - Centrum Centre - Worcester, MA
Mar. 28, 4 pm ET - #2 Boston U. (24-13-3) vs #3 Harvard (22-9-2)
Mar. 28, 7:30 pm ET - #1 New Hampshire (25-7-6) vs #4 St. Cloud State (17-15-5)
Mar. 29, 8 pm ET - Northeast Regional Championship
West Regional - March 28-29 - Mariucci Arena - Minneapolis, MN
Mar. 28, 5 pm ET - #2 Ferris State (30-9-1) vs #3 North Dakota (26-11-5)
Mar. 28, 8:30 pm ET - No. 1 Minnesota (24-8-9) vs #4 Mercyhurst (22-12-2)
Mar. 29, 5 pm ET - West Regional Championship
East Regional - March 29-30 - Dunkin' Donuts Center - Providence, RI
Mar. 29, Noon ET - #1 Cornell (28-4-1) vs #4 Minnesota State (20-10-10)
Mar. 29, 3:30 pm ET - #2 Boston College (23-10-4) vs #3 Ohio State (25-12-5)
Mar. 30, Noon ET - East Regional Championship
Midwest Regional - March 29-30 - Yost Ice Arena - Ann Arbor, MI
Mar. 29, Noon ET - #1 Colorado College (29-6-5) vs #4 Wayne State (21-16-2)
Mar. 29, 3:30 pm ET - #2 Maine (24-9-5) vs #3 Michigan (28-9-3)
Mar. 30, 3 pm ET - Midwest Regional Championship
NCAA Championship Results Since the Western Collegiate Hockey Association's founding in 1951, conference-member teams have captured a record 32 national championships.
WCHA-member teams have also finished as the national runner-up on 26 occasions while the national championship game itself has featured 58 appearances by league-member teams.
WCHA Champ Colorado College Continues Seven-Week Reign at Top of Nation's Polls
Five WCHA Teams Among Top 15; Defending NCAA Champ Minnesota at No. 5; MSU at No. 9; UND at No. 11; UMD and DU Both at No. 15; SCSU also Receive Votes
MADISON, Wisc. Colorado College, winners of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association regular season championship and MacNaughton Cup, was the nation's No. 1 ranked team for the seventh consecutive week in both Division 1 men's college hockey polls released for the period March 17-23. Coach Scott Owens' Tigers received 16 of 17 first place votes and 254 points in the USA Today/American Hockey Magazine poll and 35 of 40 first place votes and 595 points in the USCHO.com poll. In addition to the Tigers at No. 1, four other league teams were also ranked among the nation's top 15 again this past week, giving the WCHA a run of 21 consecutive weeks (since Oct. 13) with at least four teams among the top 15. Defending NCAA champion Minnesota moved up to No. 5 in both polls, Minnesota State was No. 9, North Dakota was No. 11, and Denver was No. 15 in the USA Today/American Hockey Magazine poll while Minnesota-Duluth was No. 15 in the USCHO.com poll. Also receiving votes again was St. Cloud State.
WCHA Sports Seven Winning Teams
Seven WCHA-member teams led by No. 1-ranked Colorado College's 29-6-5 (.788) sport winning records overall thru March 23rd.
Also owning winning records are Minnesota at 24-8-9 (.695), North Dakota at 26-11-5 (.679), Minnesota State at 20-10-10 (.625), Denver at 21-14-6 (.586), Minnesota-Duluth at 22-15-5 (.583), and St. Cloud State at 17-15-5 (.527).
Non-Conference Record at 52-23-8 (.675)
Western Collegiate Hockey Association-member teams are a combined 52-23-8 (.675) in 2002-03 non-conference play thru games of March 23rd.
By team, those non-conference records are: North Dakota, 10-0-0 (1.000); Denver, 9-1-0 (.900); Colorado College, 7-1-0 (.875); Minnesota, 5-2-2 (.667); St. Cloud State, 4-2-0 (.667); Wisconsin, 6-4-0 (.600); Minnesota Duluth, 4-3-1 (.563); Minnesota State, 3-2-3 (.563); Michigan Tech, 3-4-1 (.438); and Alaska Anchorage, 1-4-1 (.250).
Three WCHA Stars Named as 2003 Hobey Baker Memorial Award Finalists
CC's Sejna & Preissing, UND's Parise Selected
The 10 finalists for the 2003 Hobey Baker Memorial Award were announced on March 20th, and three Western Collegiate Hockey Association standouts Colorado College junior forward Peter Sejna, CC senior defenseman Tom Preissing, and North Dakota freshman forward Zach Parise are among the group.
The group of 10 finalists were determined by a ballot of all 60 Division 1 college hockey coaches and by a fan vote. The winner will be announced from Buffalo, N.Y. on Friday, April 11 at 2:30 pm ET as part of the NCAA Men's Frozen Four. A selection committee of 25 members and fan vote will determine the winner. Alphabetically, the 2003 Hobey Baker Award Top 10 Finalists are: Ben Eaves, Junior, F, Boston College; Christopher Higgins, Sophomore, F, Yale University; Chris Kunitz, Senior, F, Ferris State University; Dave LeNeveu, Sophomore, G, Cornell University; John-Michael Liles, Senior, D, Michigan State University; Zach Parise, Freshman, F, University of North Dakota; Tom Preissing, Senior, D, Colorado College; Peter Sejna, Junior, F, Colorado College; Joe Tallari, Junior, F, Niagara University; R.J. Umberger, Junior, F, Ohio State University.
The Hobey Hat Trick of three finalists will be announced on April 2nd.
WCHA 2003 Hobey Baker Memorial Award Finalists
(profiles courtesy of Hobey Baker Award)
Zach Parise, Freshman, F, North Dakota: the only freshman to make this year's top 10, Parise is currently the nation's highest-scoring first-year player with 61 points in 38 games... Parise racked up 20 points in his first half-dozen college games and is currently sixth in the nation in points and 6th in goals scored (26)... the Zach attack was feld in the international arena at the IIHF World Junior Championships in Canada, where he led the U.S. team in scoring... Parise was an All-WCHA Third Team honoree, was IHCCA National Rookie of the Month for December, was the WCHA Player of the Week on Oct. 15, and was the WCHA Rookie of the Week on four occasions (Oct. 28, Dec. 9, Dec. 16, and Jan. 20). Tom Preissing, Senior, D, Colorado College: the 2002-03 WCHA Student-Athlete of the Year and All-WCHA First Teamer became the fifth defenseman in league history to score 20 goals after tallying 17 in his first three years combined... his season total of 22 overall ties the WCHA record for defensemen... the three-time WCHA All-Star is second in the nation in scoring by a defenseman (22-26=48) and has been a key cog in the Tigers' nation-leading power-play... he was the WCHA Defensive Player of the Week three times (Oct. 21, Nov. 11, and Jan. 27).
Peter Sejna, Junior, F, Colorado College: the 2002-03 WCHA Player of the Year and All-WCHA First Teamer is the nation's leading scorer with 35 goals, 44 assists and 77 points... he was the IHCCA National Player of the Month for November and is averaging 1.98 points per game... he has produced at least one scoring point in 39 of his team's 40 games this season and was the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week three times (Nov. 18, Dec. 9, Jan. 27).
Five WCHA Players Among Top 10 Skaters in Latest National Scoring Statistics
Sejna (#1), Stevenson (3), Clarke (4), Parise (7), Joseph (8)
Through games of March 23, five WCHA players rank among the top 10 nationally in points per game including Colorado College junior LW Peter Sejna, who is ranked No. 1 at 1.98 (35-44=79). At No. 3 is Minnesota State sophomore F Grant Stevenson (1.68, 27-35=62), at No. 4 is CC senior F Noah Clarke (1.65, 20-46=66), at No. 7 is North Dakota freshman F Zach Parise (1.61, 26-35=61), and at No. 8 is MSU junior F Shane Joseph (1.60, 29-35=64). Others among the top 50 are UND sophomore F Brandon Bochenski (No. 11, 1.45), Minnesota freshman F Thomas Vanek (No. 17, 1.32), Denver senior F Kevin Doell (No. 29, 1.24), UM junior F Troy Riddle (No. 31, 1.22), and UND junior F David Lundbohm (No. 33, 1.21).
In goals-per-game, Sejna is No. 1 nationally at 0.88 (35g), Bochenski is No. 2 at 0.83 (35g), Stevenson is No. 5 at 0.73 (27g), Joseph is No. 6 at 0.72 (29g), CC freshman F Brett Sterling is No. 8 at 0.71 (24g), Parise is No. 10 at 0.68 (26g) and Vanek is No. 16 at 0.63 (26g).
In assists-per-game, Clarke is No. 1 nationally at 1.15 (46a), Sejna is No. 3 at 1.10 (44a), Stevenson is No. 6 at 0.95 (35a), Parise is No. 8 at 0.92 (35a), Lundbohm is No. 13 at 0.88 (37a), and Joseph is No. 14 at 0.88 (35a).
In power-play goals, CC senior D Tom Preissing is No. 2 nationally with 16 while Sejna and Doell are tied at No. 4 with 14 each.
In shorthanded goals, CC junior F Colin Stuart is tied at No. 2 with four.
In game-winning goals, Sejna is tied at No. 2 with eight, Sterling is tied at No. 5 with six, and Joseph, Minnesota-Duluth sophomore C Luke Stauffacher, and Bochenski are tied at No. 8 with five each. In points-per-game among defensemen, Preissing is No. 2 nationally at 1.20 (22-26=48), UND sophomore Andy Schneider is No. 6 at 0.98, UM junior Paul Martin is No. 8 at 0.93 and UM sophomore Keith Ballard is No. 11 at 0.90.
In points-per-game among rookies, Parise is No. 1 nationally at 1.61, Vanek is No. 3 at 1.32, Sterling and UMD F Tim Stapleton are tied at No. 7 at 1.00, and Michigan Tech F Chris Conner is No. 9 at 0.97. In goals-against average, DU junior Adam Berkhoel is No. 8 nationally at 2.30, UND sophomore Jake Brandt is No. 11 at 2.33, CC sophomore Curtis McElhinney is No. 12 at 2.34, DU senior Wade Dubielewicz is No. 18 at 2.43, UM sophomore Travis Weber is No. 23 at 2.58, and UMD freshman Isaac Reichmuth is No. 25 at 2.68.
In save percentage, St. Cloud State senior Jake Moreland is No. 15 at .914, MSU sophomore Jon Volp is No. 16 at .914, Dubielewicz is No. 21 at .912, SCSU freshman Jason Montgomery is No. 28 at .908, and Berkhoel is No. 29 at .908.
In winning percentage, McElhinney is No. 3 nationally at .779 (24-5-5), UND sophomore Josh Siembida is No. 5 at .750, Brandt is No. 9 at .722, Volp is No. 11 at .688, and Weber is tied at No. 14 at .661.
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