BGSU Club Team S/T article:
Posted: Tue Mar 16, 2010 8:02 pm
another good reason to keep the Ice Arena . . . . 
BGSU club hockey to play in nationals
WRITTEN BY BY KEVIN GORDON ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
TUESDAY, 16 MARCH 2010 11:36
The Bowling Green State University club hockey team will play in the American Collegiate Hockey Association's Division II national championship this week.
The 16 teams in the tournament are divided into four four-team pools, with the four pool winners advancing to the semifinals. The tournament starts Wednesday in Simsbury, Conn.
"You always want to win a national championship, but just the experience alone will be great," BG coach Toby Hafner. "For our team, this is the first time we've ever gone to the national tournament. It's quite an accomplishment to be going to be nationals and to be considered one of the top teams in the nation.
"Just the experience of being there, playing the best teams in the country, seeing schools you normally don't see during your regular season, playing different teams and building the reputation of the program is tremendous. This is going to be a great tool for attracting players to our program."
BG earned its spot in the national tournament by winning both of its games in the regional tournament. The country is divided into four regions, with four teams from each advancing to nationals.
The top two teams in the regional earned a national berth. The next eight teams then played to determine the other two bids.
BG, seeded eighth in the regional, was a 6-4 winner over No. 5 Temple the first day and a 4-0 win over No. 3 Florida Gulf Coast the second day.
BG's record is 14-11.
"Heading into the regional, I knew if we stuck to the basics and doing the little things right, we definitely had a good chance of beating Temple," Hafner said. "After that, it was up in the air as to who we were going to play. "The first game was key because I thought if we could get some confidence, we could win a playoff game against a good team and it might snow ball the next day.
BGHS graduate Ryan Thayer made 65 saves against FGC.
"(Thayer) was phenomenal," Hafner said. "We scored goals at key moments and took advantage of our opportunities. We did the little things and it made a big difference."
The other teams in BG's pool are two-time defending national champion Davenport (Iowa), Boston College and Eastern Washington.
"It doesn't matter who you play," Hafner said. "These are the best teams in the nation. You're not going to get any soft teams in a tournament like this. I'll be a tough test, but we're looking for to it. It'll be a good challenge. You pretty much have to win every game to make it to the semifinals."
BG is averaging 4.75 goals per game and giving up 4.29.
Chris Dyer, who played high school hockey at Toledo St. Francis, leads the team with 34 goals and 48 points.
In goal, Thayer has a 4.11 goals-against average and an .820 save and Bryan Gomez, who played at Northwood Prep (N.Y.), has a 4.20 goals-against and a .780 save percentage.
"We just try to play a good defensive game and take advantage of our chances offensively," Hafner said.
Thayer is one of two BGHS graduates on the team. The other is forward Brett Heringhaus, who has six goals and 11 assists.
"Our guys have played high school hockey and junior hockey," said Hafner, who is in his first year as the team's head coach He also played at St. Francis. "But they're not looking to make the commitment that juniors or college hockey hockey require.
"They know they can come to a school where hockey is still important. They're still competitive and they still have that drive to win. A lot of getting good players depends on the reputation of your varsity program and BG is rich in reputation as a big hockey school and a big varsity school. A lot of the kids know those schools carry club programs."
Hafner said the team is supported financially by the university's club sports fund and the players, who each pay about a $1,000 each.
BGSU club hockey to play in nationals
WRITTEN BY BY KEVIN GORDON ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
TUESDAY, 16 MARCH 2010 11:36
The Bowling Green State University club hockey team will play in the American Collegiate Hockey Association's Division II national championship this week.
The 16 teams in the tournament are divided into four four-team pools, with the four pool winners advancing to the semifinals. The tournament starts Wednesday in Simsbury, Conn.
"You always want to win a national championship, but just the experience alone will be great," BG coach Toby Hafner. "For our team, this is the first time we've ever gone to the national tournament. It's quite an accomplishment to be going to be nationals and to be considered one of the top teams in the nation.
"Just the experience of being there, playing the best teams in the country, seeing schools you normally don't see during your regular season, playing different teams and building the reputation of the program is tremendous. This is going to be a great tool for attracting players to our program."
BG earned its spot in the national tournament by winning both of its games in the regional tournament. The country is divided into four regions, with four teams from each advancing to nationals.
The top two teams in the regional earned a national berth. The next eight teams then played to determine the other two bids.
BG, seeded eighth in the regional, was a 6-4 winner over No. 5 Temple the first day and a 4-0 win over No. 3 Florida Gulf Coast the second day.
BG's record is 14-11.
"Heading into the regional, I knew if we stuck to the basics and doing the little things right, we definitely had a good chance of beating Temple," Hafner said. "After that, it was up in the air as to who we were going to play. "The first game was key because I thought if we could get some confidence, we could win a playoff game against a good team and it might snow ball the next day.
BGHS graduate Ryan Thayer made 65 saves against FGC.
"(Thayer) was phenomenal," Hafner said. "We scored goals at key moments and took advantage of our opportunities. We did the little things and it made a big difference."
The other teams in BG's pool are two-time defending national champion Davenport (Iowa), Boston College and Eastern Washington.
"It doesn't matter who you play," Hafner said. "These are the best teams in the nation. You're not going to get any soft teams in a tournament like this. I'll be a tough test, but we're looking for to it. It'll be a good challenge. You pretty much have to win every game to make it to the semifinals."
BG is averaging 4.75 goals per game and giving up 4.29.
Chris Dyer, who played high school hockey at Toledo St. Francis, leads the team with 34 goals and 48 points.
In goal, Thayer has a 4.11 goals-against average and an .820 save and Bryan Gomez, who played at Northwood Prep (N.Y.), has a 4.20 goals-against and a .780 save percentage.
"We just try to play a good defensive game and take advantage of our chances offensively," Hafner said.
Thayer is one of two BGHS graduates on the team. The other is forward Brett Heringhaus, who has six goals and 11 assists.
"Our guys have played high school hockey and junior hockey," said Hafner, who is in his first year as the team's head coach He also played at St. Francis. "But they're not looking to make the commitment that juniors or college hockey hockey require.
"They know they can come to a school where hockey is still important. They're still competitive and they still have that drive to win. A lot of getting good players depends on the reputation of your varsity program and BG is rich in reputation as a big hockey school and a big varsity school. A lot of the kids know those schools carry club programs."
Hafner said the team is supported financially by the university's club sports fund and the players, who each pay about a $1,000 each.