NO. 1 TEAM IN AMERICAN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION MEN’S DIVISION I RANKINGS IS MINOT STATE UNIVERSITY AGAIN
Beavers Succumb to University of Mary then Sweep University of Jamestown
UNION LAKE, Mich. – (January 31, 2024) – Minot State University (24-5-0) holds the top spot in the 2023-2024 American Collegiate Hockey Association Men’s Division 1 Ranking No. 13. The Beavers, on top for the fifth consecutive week, started off the week by losing to in-state rival University of Mary 5-3 on the road at the Starion Sports Complex in Mandan, N.D. The Beavers jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Marauders tied it at 2-2 after two periods. Jay Buchholz tallied his ninth goal of the season just 1:27 in the third period to put the Beavers up 3-2, but Andrew Huber tied it up at 3-3 only 1:21 later. With only 3:37 remaining in the game, Johny Witzke got the game-winner and Tanner Eskro added an empty net goal for the final margin. On Friday, the Beavers shut out its other in-state rival, University of Jamestown, 3-0 as Jake Anthony stopped all 29 shots thrown his way. The Beavers completed the sweep Saturday night at home winning 3-2 in comeback fashion after trailing 2-1 late in the second period, as Carter Barley tied it and Sheldin Howard got the game-winner on the power play in the third period.
No. 2 Adrian College (22-2-0) swept Calvin University to claim its 11th Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League Regular Season Championship in the 14-year existence of the league. Thursday night in the friendly confines of Arrington Ice Arena, the Bulldogs trailed 2-1 after one period before scoring the next 6 goals for a 7-2 win. Blake Wideman had a pair of goals, Brodie Thornton tallied four assists, while Sebastian Smith, Matteo DiGiulio, and Jordan Comilla each had a goal and an assist. Carlos Siso had 39 saves in defeat for the Knights. Saturday night at Eagles Ice Center in Grand Rapids, Mich., Wideman and David Dell each had a goal and an assist while Cameron Armstrong scored the game-winner in the second period for a 3-1 win for the Bulldogs. Adam Yost turned aside 40 shots in defeat for the Knights.
No. 3 University of Central Oklahoma (22-4-0) split a pair of road conference games at City National Arena against University of Nevada-Las Vegas (18-6-1). Friday night, Bronchos goaltender Doug Wakelyn made 42 saves for the 2-0 shutout victory. After 59:07 of scoreless play between the two teams, Sam Sykes tallied the game winner past Rebels goaltender Vince Benedetto before adding an empty net goal 34 seconds later. Saturday night, the Bronchos jumped out to a 2-0 lead halfway through the game on goals by Artem Shura and Vitalii Mikhailov before Bradley Golant pulled the Rebels within a goal at 2-1 after two periods. Ratcheting up the pressure in the third period, Mason Kelly tied the game at the 10:19 mark before Jayson Dimizio netted the game winner with 6:35 remaining in the third period for the 3-2 comeback win. With the split, the Rebels moved up to No. 4 in the rankings.
Advancing up two spots and into the Top 5 is Liberty University (15-6-1) which swept a pair of road games over Stony Brook University (6-2, 4-2) at The Rinx in Hauppauge, N.Y. Daniel Schwenke led the Flames attack with three goals and an assist, while Jacob Kalandyk (goal, three assists), Matt Bartel (three goals), Nick Pomerleau (two goals, assist), Jackson Vercellono (two assists), Brett Gammer (two assists), and Truett Olson (goal, assist) added support. Hunter Virostek stopped 52 shots combined while Seawolves goalies Matvei Kazakov (42 saves) and Scott Barnikow (37 saves) each faced over 40 shots in a losing effort.
Moving into the polls this week is No. 24 Indiana University of Pennsylvania and No. 25 Grand Canyon University while West Chester University and University of Michigan-Dearborn drop out of the Top 25.
The Western Collegiate Hockey League leads the way with eight (of 10) of its member teams ranked, while Midwest College Hockey has three (of 7) of its member teams ranked, Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League has four (of 10) of its member teams ranked, and Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League has three (of 8) of its member teams ranked.
The ACHA uses two computer rankings generated by USHSHO.com, Ranking A (Wins with Maximum Goal Differential of 7) and Ranking B (Wins with Maximum Goal Differential of 1), to come up with an average of the two rankings. The ACHA will then use the list generated from the average for its weekly ranking. Ties will be broken using the higher ranked team from Ranking B until the Top 25 teams are listed. All games that go to overtime will be scored as ties in the computer ranking.
Over the past 20 seasons, 12 different schools have won the ACHA Men’s Division I National Championship: Lindenwood University (4), Minot State University (3), Adrian College (2), University of Central Oklahoma (2), University of Illinois (2), Arizona State University, Davenport University, University of Delaware, Oakland University, Ohio University, Penn State University, and University of Rhode Island.
Now in its 33rd season of action, there have been a total of 14 schools that have won the ACHA Men’s Division I National Championship:
- Penn State University (5 times)
- Lindenwood University (4)
- Ohio University (4)
- Minot State University (3)
- Adrian College (2)
- North Dakota State University (2)
- University Central Oklahoma (2)
- University of Illinois (2)
- Arizona State University
- Davenport University
- Iowa State University
- Oakland University
- University of Delaware
- University of Rhode Island
A total of 72 teams will compete in Men’s Division I this season, including University of Mary, which moves up from Men’s Division II after winning back-to-back National Championships in 2021 and 2022.
The computer ranking will for the tenth time determine the 24 teams that qualify for the 2024 ACHA Men’s Division I National Championships, which will include the following eight auto bids:
- (CHMA) College Hockey Mid-America
- (ECHA) Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association
- (ESCHL) Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League
- (GLCHL) Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League
- (MCH) Midwest College Hockey
- (NECHL) Northeast Collegiate Hockey League
- (WCHL) Western Collegiate Hockey League
- (WHAC) Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference
The fourteenth ranking of the regular season will be released on Wednesday, February 7, 2024.
The 2024 ACHA Men’s Division I National Championships presented by FloHockey will be hosted March 7-12 for the second time at the Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights, Mo. This will be the first year of the 24-team format.
| 2023-2024 ACHA Men’s Division I Ranking #13 | ||||
| Rank | School Name | M1 Record | Previous | Conference |
| 1 | Minot State | 24-5-0 | 1 | INDEP |
| 2 | Adrian | 22-2-0 | 2 | GLCHL |
| 3 | Central Oklahoma | 22-4-0 | 3 | WCHL |
| 4 | Nevada-Las Vegas | 18-6-1 | 5 | WCHL |
| 5 | Liberty | 15-6-1 | 7 | INDEP |
| 6 | Ohio | 20-6-3 | 8 | INDEP |
| 7 | Jamestown | 18-8-0 | 4 | MCH |
| 8 | Maryville | 19-9-1 | 6 | INDEP |
| 9 | Niagara | 15-6-1 | 9 | ESCHL |
| 10 | Mary | 19-9-1 | 10 | MCH |
| 11 | Purdue Northwest | 20-5-1 | 11 | GLCHL |
| 12 | Pittsburgh | 16-9-2 | 13 | ESCHL |
| 13 | Calvin | 18-6-2 | 12 | GLCHL |
| 14 | Arizona | 11-10-1 | 17 | WCHL |
| 15 | Illinois State | 20-10-1 | 15 | MCH |
| 16 | Grand Valley State | 17-6-2 | 14 | GLCHL |
| 17 | Utah | 12-8-1 | 16 | WCHL |
| 18 | Missouri State | 12-11-2 | 20 | WCHL |
| 19 | Indiana Tech | 18-9-1 | 18 | WHAC |
| 20 | Delaware | 13-7-2 | 19 | ESCHL |
| 21 | Iowa State | 8-6-0 | 21 | INDEP |
| 22 | Oklahoma | 10-9-2 | 24 | WCHL |
| 23 | Colorado | 9-9-2 | 23 | WCHL |
| 24 | Indiana Pennsylvania | 17-6-2 | NR | CHMA |
| 25 | Grand Canyon | 11-13-1 | NR | WCHL |
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About American Collegiate Hockey Association
The American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) was founded in 1991 and is the national association for Non-NCAA Collegiate Hockey throughout the United States. Our organization of more than 460 colleges and university-affiliated teams representing 48 states provides structure, regulates operations, and promotes the sport of Hockey nationwide. With approximately 13,000 players and coaches as well as countless volunteers and game officials, the ACHA has experienced tremendous growth over the past decade and continues to be a viable option for college bound student-athletes to continue playing competitive hockey nationwide. Headquartered in Troy, Michigan, the ACHA’s primary mission is to support the growth of Collegiate Hockey while emphasizing academic performance, personal development, and opportunities for regional, national and international competition. The ACHA identifies standards which serve to unite and regulate teams at the collegiate level and entered its 33rd season in September 2023. For more information, visit achahockey.org
