We Have Arrived
UMSL Tritons are in Philly for the National Championships
GPCIHL April 1st, 2009 at 7:42PM May 21st, 2009 7:41PMThe UMSL Tritons have arrived at the NCRHA College Roller Hockey National Championships in Feasterville, Pa.
UMSL finished second in the nation last year and has only upgraded its roster since. It stands to reason that the team is even stronger now.
But in the midst of unprecedented budgetary turmoil, the Tritons have traveled a rocky road in ’08-09. A seven-month journey has often turned into a tedious slog under the weight of sky-high hopes and expectations, with some of their strongest horses slowed by nagging injuries along the way.
But the Tritons, led by first-year head coach Jaime Schulz, have finally hit the home stretch.
For a team that hasn't quite played up to its considerable potential yet, there’s a different feeling brewing – it feels like a team ripe for a breakthrough.
UMSL recently hooked up with equipment giant Mission Hockey on a landmark equipment deal. With a team healthier than it’s been all season, the Tritons have another chance to make history this week in Pennsylvania.
The end is in sight. Maybe that means the pressure is off. It’s time to play hockey.
Round Robin Excitement
Round Robin Excitement
Because all teams are guaranteed four games at Nationals, the tournament begins with three games of round-robin pool play. While they aren't life-and-death, the round-robin games offer plenty of intrigue.
For the second straight season, big-name schools and traditional inline hockey powers highlight the Tritons' round-robin schedule.
UMSL will open the tournament on Thursday at 12:15 PM EST against the Michigan Wolverines, who finished second in the Midwest Collegiate Roller Hockey League.
Thursday evening at 9:45 EST, UMSL will take on the star-studded Arizona State Sun Devils.
The Sun Devils' leading scorer is Sunnyvale, Calif., native Brian Ganz, who spent a year and a half at Lindenwood. His final goal as a Lion was a second-period backbreaker against the Tritons on Nov. 18, 2007, which was key to putting UMSL's upset bid to sleep.
Arizona State is a talented squad that will finally be near full-strength after a season full of lineup issues. Count the Sun Devils among the dark-horse championship contenders.
Friday at 1:15 EST, the Tritons will face off against the Towson Tigers, one of college roller hockey's most prestigious and successful programs.
Last time UMSL and Towson met was in January 2005 at the NCRHA Winter Invitational in Detroit, where Towson's Mike Burke and UMSL's Thomas Ames staged a classic goaltending duel that ended in a 1-1 deadlock.
Ben Lambert, who played more games in an UMSL uniform than anyone else, says it was possibly the most physical college game he was involved in.
Freshman Zach Stacy, playing in his first collegiate event, scored UMSL's only goal.
While the rosters have turned over since, this will still be an intense game, likely reminiscent of UMSL's battle with Stony Brook in last year's final round-robin tilt. Aaron Schulz's late second-period goal broke a 2-2 tie and gave UMSL a hard-fought 3-2 win.
For the second straight season, big-name schools and traditional inline hockey powers highlight the Tritons' round-robin schedule.
UMSL will open the tournament on Thursday at 12:15 PM EST against the Michigan Wolverines, who finished second in the Midwest Collegiate Roller Hockey League.
Thursday evening at 9:45 EST, UMSL will take on the star-studded Arizona State Sun Devils.
The Sun Devils' leading scorer is Sunnyvale, Calif., native Brian Ganz, who spent a year and a half at Lindenwood. His final goal as a Lion was a second-period backbreaker against the Tritons on Nov. 18, 2007, which was key to putting UMSL's upset bid to sleep.
Arizona State is a talented squad that will finally be near full-strength after a season full of lineup issues. Count the Sun Devils among the dark-horse championship contenders.
Friday at 1:15 EST, the Tritons will face off against the Towson Tigers, one of college roller hockey's most prestigious and successful programs.
Last time UMSL and Towson met was in January 2005 at the NCRHA Winter Invitational in Detroit, where Towson's Mike Burke and UMSL's Thomas Ames staged a classic goaltending duel that ended in a 1-1 deadlock.
Ben Lambert, who played more games in an UMSL uniform than anyone else, says it was possibly the most physical college game he was involved in.
Freshman Zach Stacy, playing in his first collegiate event, scored UMSL's only goal.
While the rosters have turned over since, this will still be an intense game, likely reminiscent of UMSL's battle with Stony Brook in last year's final round-robin tilt. Aaron Schulz's late second-period goal broke a 2-2 tie and gave UMSL a hard-fought 3-2 win.
The Tritons will be dealing with one of the most feared snipers in college roller hockey when they face off against the Tigers. Towson’s Ryan Cowdell is on the brink of his second consecutive sixty-goal season. The third-year forward has racked up 56 goals, good for third in the nation. Last season, he finished tied for third nationally with 104 points, and his 61 goals ranked second only to instant legend Charlie Middleton of UC Irvine (104).
Towson was one of the hottest teams in the country during the second semester. The Tigers won their first five games of the second half, and enjoyed a streak of 11-1-1 heading into the ECRHA DI semifinal against Buffalo, which they dropped 8-2.
Veteran D Back to Health
UMSL captain Adam Clarke, who missed six games with a back injury, is back at full strength in time for his final shot at a college national championship.
Clarke's collegiate career dates back to the pre-NCRHA days, when he played in a national final with Meramec CC as a freshman in 2001-02. (College roller hockey’s eligibility clocks reset to zero when the NCRHA was founded in 2003-04.)
Veteran D Back to Health
UMSL captain Adam Clarke, who missed six games with a back injury, is back at full strength in time for his final shot at a college national championship.
Clarke's collegiate career dates back to the pre-NCRHA days, when he played in a national final with Meramec CC as a freshman in 2001-02. (College roller hockey’s eligibility clocks reset to zero when the NCRHA was founded in 2003-04.)
Seven years later, as his college eligibility expires, Clarke will graduate from UMSL.
This will be Clarke's seventh National Championship Tournament. He has played in five championship games and has reached the final four six times.
Last season, his first in Division I, Clarke was named first-team all-tournament after leading UMSL to a second-place finish. He has scored goals in four of his five career championship game appearances.
Clarke's defensive partner, fellow veteran and two-way stud Andy Meade, played through an injury and was one of UMSL’s few bright spots in the GPCIHL championship game. “The Animal†is back to full strength in time for Nationals.
Meade was named first-team all-tournament in leading St. Charles CC to a junior college national championship in 2007 in St. Louis, and helped lead UMSL to the DI championship game in '08, his first season as a Triton. He was one of the Tritons' top performers at last year's NCT in Colorado Springs.
This will be Clarke's seventh National Championship Tournament. He has played in five championship games and has reached the final four six times.
Last season, his first in Division I, Clarke was named first-team all-tournament after leading UMSL to a second-place finish. He has scored goals in four of his five career championship game appearances.
Clarke's defensive partner, fellow veteran and two-way stud Andy Meade, played through an injury and was one of UMSL’s few bright spots in the GPCIHL championship game. “The Animal†is back to full strength in time for Nationals.
Meade was named first-team all-tournament in leading St. Charles CC to a junior college national championship in 2007 in St. Louis, and helped lead UMSL to the DI championship game in '08, his first season as a Triton. He was one of the Tritons' top performers at last year's NCT in Colorado Springs.
3 in, 3 out
It will be the last hurrah for three Tritons: fifth year players Adam Clarke, Blake Propp, and Jeremy Scott, who have played in a combined 83 NCT games and won a combined six national championships (but none with UMSL).
Three Tritons will be playing in their first collegiate NCT: Danny Dwyer, Marty Gwozdz, and goaltender Jimmy Steger.
None of the three will shrink in the face of high-stakes competition.
Dwyer is a former Midget Major AAA ice hockey star, and also teamed with Steger on a Francis Howell inline squad that reached consecutive Tier 1 state championship games.
Gwozdz is a cagey vet, in the best shape of anyone on the team, who’s played NARCh Platinum and has proven his mettle as a top-four defenseman on the stacked St. Louis Cobras PIHA team, paired with former Lindenwood star Steve Hewkin.
Dwyer has scored 21 goals this season, second on the team behind senior Blake Propp.
B Team ready to roll
Head coach Rick Matteson and his UMSL B squad have also arrived in Feasterville. Behind the fantastic freshman trio of Tyler Chapman, Damion Matteson, and Cody Baugh, with a strong, dedicated core of vets, the B Tritons appear poised to challenge for UMSL's first B team national title.
Re-PJ?
Last year in Colorado Springs, mega-hyped true freshman PJ Tallo announced his presence immediately, with three goals and an assist – all shorthanded – in the first 4:31 of the Tritons’ opening game against Eastern Michigan. UMSL took a 4-0 lead despite three penalties in the first 3:45.
Tallo’s third goal, which he scored after using highly accomplished Eastern seniors Steve Kolis and John Schultz as pylons, was one of UMSL’s classic Nationals moments.
Later in the period, the freshman had his jersey torn during a scrum in front of the net, then had his stick slashed in half during the second period as he scored his fourth goal of the contest. He finished the game with eight points.
In the Tritons’ first-round playoff game against Long Beach State, Tallo’s third-period natural hat trick – three straight goals in the final 2:53 of the game – brought UMSL back from a 5-4 deficit and averted disaster in a 7-5 Triton triumph.
The true freshman finished with 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists) in seven games at Nationals.
Grinder Glory
Veteran forwards Aaron Schulz and Jason Holzum scored some of UMSL’s biggest goals at last season’s NCT. In addition to his game-winner against Stony Brook, Schulz scored a huge second-period goal in the quarterfinal against Florida.
Holzum cut a two-goal deficit in half with an early-third-period goal against Long Beach State, setting the stage for Tallo’s endgame heroics.
The superstars can’t do it all by themselves. It always takes a few big goals from the grinders. From Ben Lambert in ’04, to Doug Purk in ’06, to Eric Thompson in ’07, to Schulz and Holzum in ’08, it’s hard to win without timely goalscoring up and down the lineup.
Good Shepard
Remember the gritty, lightning-fast net-crasher who set UMSL’s single-season goalscoring record in 2005-06? That’s what the Tritons were hoping to re-capture when they brought Jake Shepard back to the DI squad for 2008-09.
Shepard had taken some time off from the full-time demands of UMSL hockey to concentrate on earning a degree from UMSL’s full-time-and-then-some Nursing program, but he returned for this season, with a schedule heavier than ever.
The move appears to have paid off. Shepard is back to his ’05-06 form. He is now one of the fastest players on the team, and was one of the Tritons’ best players at the GPCIHL Championships. In the beginning there were doubters, but Shepard has answered them.
Gearing Up
The Tritons’ new gear from Mission Hockey, including the spectacular Boss Black skates, continues to roll in. Most of the team should be equipped in time for the NCT.
Across America
Thursday night’s clash with the Arizona State Sun Devils marks UMSL’s first-ever meeting with a school from the state of Arizona.
Since 2003-04, UMSL has faced teams from 18 different states (California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Vermont). Arizona will be the 19th.
To add more states to the list this year, UMSL’s playoff opponents would have to include Louisiana-Lafayette, Ohio State, Rhode Island, and/or Rutgers.
Platooning No More
Goaltender Matt Endom has been ruled ineligible, making freshman Jimmy Steger the undisputed number-one.
Steger has earned the spot. He hasn’t missed a practice all season, and for most of his true freshman campaign he led the nation in goals-against average, save percentage, and shutouts.