AMERICAN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION NAMES LARRY ROCHA AS COACH-IN-CHIEF
TROY, Mich. – (June 20, 2023) – The American Collegiate Hockey Association, the governing body for non-varsity collegiate hockey in the United States, announced today that Larry Rocha has been named ACHA Coach-In-Chief.
Rocha has been the Head Coach of the Saint Anselm College NCAA men’s ice hockey program on since June 11, 2018. An alumnus of Saint Anselm, Rocha served as an assistant coach since the start of the 2013-14 season before assuming the helm as Head Coach.
Rocha began his coaching career as an assistant at Penn State University from 1979-84 and also served as the acting head coach. Rocha guided the Nittany Lions to the 1984 ACHA National Championship and was later inducted into the Penn State Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 1999.
An adjunct professor of economics at Saint Anselm, Rocha is one of 12 Coaches in Chief for USA Hockey and is in charge of the education of coaches of USAH’s New England District.
“I am very happy to welcome Larry Rocha to the ACHA family as our Coach-In-Chief,” said ACHA Executive Director Craig Barnett. “Larry brings many years of hockey experience to the ACHA including winning a National Championship as a Head Coach in the ACHA at Penn State in the 1980’s. As the current CIC for the New England District of USA Hockey, I feel his relationship with the Coaches group including Assistant Executive Director Bob Mancini, will bring tremendous ideas and resources to our coaches in their development!”
Barnett continued, “I’d like to thank Mike Lichtenberger for his many years of service as Coach-In-Chief to the ACHA and wish him all the best as he moves on to his next adventure!”
Rocha can be contacted at lrocha@achahockey.org. For more information, please contact Executive Director Craig Barnett at cbarnett@achahockey.org.
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