TROY, MICH. (November 30, 2023)- The Men's Division 2 Regional Rankings for all games through November 26th have been released. This is the third of nine (9) Regional Rankings that will culminate with the Final Ranking on Tuesday, February 13th.
Central Rankings
Lindenwood and the University of Saint Thomas continue to switch places at the top of the Region. This week it is the Tommies, after sweeping their weekend series of the Minnesota-Duluth prior to Thanksgiving. Michigan State continues to rise, now sitting in the all-important 6th spot, which guarantees a first round bye in the Regionals. Minnesota State-Mankato makes it first appearance in the Top 20, checking in at #15.
Dropped out of Top 20:
Saint John's University
Rankings Breakdown by League:
Independent: 8 Teams
WCCHA: 7 Teams
NCHL: 3
MACHA: 2
Northeast Rankings
The Huskies of Northeastern retook the top spot this week, pushing ahead of the University of New Hampshire. The #2-#4 are continuing to tighten as the current #2 UNH has a .04 lead over #3 Keene State College and a .28 lead over #4 UMass. Bridgewater State University returns to the Top 20 after dropping out last week, joined by fellow NECHA team, Bryant University, grabbing the last spot in the NE Top 20
Dropped out of Top 20:
Providence College
College of the Holy Cross
Rankings Breakdown by League
NECHA- 15
SECHL- 4
Independent-1
Southeast Rankings
FGCU split with #2(Central) Lindenwood before the break and vaulted over Kentucky and Indiana to get to the top spot in the Southeast. While following out of #1, IU is the closest of all the #2 seeds, just .04 behind the Florida Gulf Coast. The rest of the Top 10 in the region seem to be settling into places as only slight movement by the same teams are represented. University of Delaware hits the Top 20 for the first time this year, grabbing the #18 spot.
Dropped out of Top 20:
University of Dayton
Rankings Breakdown by League
ACCHL- 9
TSCHL- 8
Independent-2
CSCHC- 1
West Rankings
Montana State is the lone team to hold onto #1 seed this week. The Bobcats also have the biggest lead of any Top Seed in the race for a Nationals Autobid. Dakota College, currently at #2, while chasing MSU also is trying to be chased down by University of Providence, who rose from #6 to #3. Loyola Marymount University has recorded their highest West Region Ranking in program history, settling in at the #7 spot. University of Utah and Colorado State both join the Top 20 for the first time this season, along with University of California returning after falling out in Ranking #2.
Dropped out of Top 20:
Williston State College
University of Texas
Rankings Breakdown by League
MWCHL-6
WCHC- 5
BMHC-4
TCHC-2
PAC-2
Independent-1
The rankings will be released weekly on Thursdays at 6pm EST through December 12th. They will resume on a weekly basis on January 25th and will continue until the final ranking are released on February 13th. The top two teams in each region will receive an automatic invitation to the 2024 ACHA Men's Division 2 National Championships. Teams ranked #3-#10 will receive an automatic invitation to the 2024 Men's Division 2 Regional Tournaments. Finally, four (4) teams will earn a spot in the Regional Tournaments either through a League Auto bid or as a wild card if the league does not use their respective auto bid. The 2024 Regional Tournaments will be on February 23-25th. The 2024 National Championships for Men's Division 2 will be March 11th-15th, in Saint Louis, Missouri.
