EXCELSIOR, Minn. – For the first time in program history, the Trine University men's hockey team is one of the ten best teams in the country according to this week's USCHO.com NCAA Division III coaches poll. They moved up three spots from a week ago to sit at ninth in the current edition of the national rankings.
The Thunder received votes totaling 142, taking a secure hold of the ninth position in the poll. They are a full 59 points ahead of tenth ranked College of St. Scholastica and a mere three points behind the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, currently in eighth. Adrian College remains the lone other member of the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) to be ranked, retaining their second-place status. St. Norbert College continues to receive votes, now sitting just two spots out of the top-15.
Trine secured a convincing sweep of their hosts from Concordia University Wisconsin this past weekend. They won 5-1 in both games with five different members of the team scoring on Friday and four different skaters scoring on Saturday for a truly balanced offensive attack. The pair of wins secures the Thunder a home series for the opening round of the NCHA Harris Cup Playoffs, which are set to begin on Friday, February 16.
The team returns home for their last home series of the regular season this weekend. They start the two-game matchup with Lawrence University on Friday, February 2 at 7 p.m.