FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The 20
th-ranked Indiana Tech ACHA Division 1 men's ice hockey team is set to play ACHA Division 2 Michigan State this weekend, with Friday's game at the SportONE/Parkview Icehouse the Warriors last home game of the regular season.
#20 Indiana Tech (20-12-1-1, 41 points) (Win-Loss-Overtime Loss-Shootout Loss) Friday, Feb. 12, 8:30 p.m. vs. Michigan State (9-9-3, W-L-T, 21 points) Fort Wayne, Indiana (SportONE/Parkview Icehouse)Saturday, Feb. 13, 2:30 p.m. at Michigan State (9-9-3, 21 points) Brighton, Michigan (Kensington Valley Ice House) Following the Warriors: Live video will be available for Friday's game via Stretch Internet's Game Center at
http://portal.stretchinternet.com/indianatech/, while live stats will also be available via Point Streak's Game Live (link to be sent out before games) at IndianaTechWarriors.com. You can also follow @INTechICE_D1 and @INTechWarriors on Twitter to keep up with the action.
Last Time Out: The Orange and Black picked up two thrilling wins last weekend over fellow second-year program Midland at the SportONE/Parkview Icehouse, winning 4-3 in overtime and finishing off the weekend sweep with a 3-2 shootout victory.
Jace Childs netted the game-winner on Friday while
Joe Molfetta scored the shootout-winner on Saturday.
Zach Larson picked up both wins while recording 64 saves over the weekend.
Head Coach Frank DiCristofaro: The first head coach in program history,
Frank DiCristofaro enters his second season as Head Ice Hockey coach at Indiana Tech. In his first season at the helm, he guided the Warriors to an 8-25-0-1 record while playing one of the toughest schedules in the ACHA. The program's first win came against then-14
th ranked Oakland University Golden Grizzlies on Sept. 27, 2014. Under DiCristofaro's watch, the Warrior hockey program was able to gain entry to the highly-respected Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL). The league boasts annual powerhouses Adrian, Davenport and Oakland and as a member of one of the deepest and most talented leagues in the ACHA, the Warriors are tested by the best on a weekly basis.
Scouting the Opposition: Michigan State – The Spartans have dropped their last five games, most recently falling to Miami (Ohio) 3-0 and 2-1 last weekend. Joseph Hewitt leads the team in points (25) and assists (15) and is second in goals with 10. Will Badner has scored 11 goals this season while Jacob Peacock and Michael Yuhasz have 14 assists each. Eric Matych has logged the most minutes in net this season for the Spartans, compiling a 4-4 record with a 3.56 goals against average and 90.4% save percentage in 540 minutes of ice time.
Series Notes: Michigan State – Tech is 0-2 all-time against the Spartans, falling 4-3 last year at home while dropping a 3-0 decision on the road.
Quentin Holmes and
Kyle Cobb both tallied goals, while
John Slavik made 26 saves in the first meeting and
Zach Larson stopped 42 shots in the second matchup.
Rankings Update: The Warriors dropped one spot to 20
th in this week's ACHA National Rankings. Tech had spent the previous two weeks at 19
th and are 7-1 since joining the top 25, with their lone loss coming to then-10
th ranked Michigan-Dearborn on Jan. 29.
Looking Ahead: Next week's Top 25 Poll is the final one of the regular season and will determine the 20 teams that make it to the ACHA National Championship. Seven teams have already claimed auto-bids to the championship by winning the regular season of their respective conferences: Mercyhurst-ECHA, Stony Brook-ESCHL, Davenport-GLCHL, Syracuse-NECHL, Central Oklahoma-WCHL, and host Robert Morris (IL).
Tourney Time: The Warriors will take part in the GLCHL Tournament next weekend at Michigan-Dearborn, and seeding is still up in the air. As of now Tech will either be the sixth or seventh seed, depending on this weekend's results with Kent State, Rochester and Oakland. Seeds one through four are set (Davenport, Adrian, UM-Dearborn, Western Michigan) as is number nine (Eastern Michigan).
Sweeping it Up: Tech has swept five different opponents in weekend sets so far this season (minimum two games) after not recording a sweep in their inaugural season. The Warriors have dispatched Eastern Michigan (Oct. 9-10), Canisius (Oct. 23, 25), Kent State (Nov. 13-14), Ferris State (Jan. 15-16), Illinois State (Jan. 22-23) and Midland (Feb. 5-6). In those 12 games, the Orange and Black have scored 68 times while only allowing 20 goals and have recorded three shutouts in those games.
Keeping Up with the Best of Them: Jace Childs and
Jarrett Pfeiffer have supplied the Warriors with plenty of offense this season and they find themselves among the best in the ACHA. Childs leads the Orange and Black in points (58), assists (34) and goals (24). The Savage, Minnesota winger is tied for fourth in the nation in points, tied for seventh in assists and tied for 13
th in goals. Pfeiffer is second on the team in all three categories (47, 24, 23) and is tied for 16
th in points, tied for 25
th in assists and tied for 17
th in goals.
Not to be Forgotten: Just behind Childs and Pfeiffer is the trio of
Adam Jonak,
Ryan Theisen and
Joe Molfetta, who each have recorded 30-plus points this year. Jonak is third on the team in goals with 18 while Theisen is right behind with 15. Mofletta has 13 goals to his credit. Theisen also ranks third in assists with 22 while Molfetta is in fifth with 18.
Power Play Specialists: 10 different Warriors have scored goals on the power play this season, giving head coach
Frank DiCristofaro lots of options when his team has a man advantage.
Jace Childs leads the team with seven power play goals, while
Zack Morlock and
Jarrett Pfeiffer each have each six apiece. Four of
Quentin Holmes goals have come while up a man while
Ryan Theisen has three tallies on the power play this season.
Protecting the Net: Zach Larson has been stout in between the pipes this season for the Warriors, accumulating over 1,200 minutes of ice time while recording three shutouts, tied for sixth in the country, and is stopping 91.56 of the shots he's faced. He is allowing just 2.79 goals per game, tied for 29
th in the country and is sporting a 12-5-1-0 record.
Holiday Winnings: The Orange and Black went 3-0 over Thanksgiving weekend to claim their first tournament title in program history as they won the Michigan-Dearborn Great Lakes Showcase. Tech defeated ACHA Division 3 opponents Michigan State and Central Michigan, 10-0, and 4-2, respectively, before taking down the host Wolverines in overtime in the championship game, 3-2.
Diverse Ice: Tech is loaded with players from all across the country as well as all over the globe. The Warriors feature players from 10 different states and four countries. Michigan tops the list with seven athletes, while three Warriors hail from the Hoosier State. Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Canada are all represented with two players while California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas, the Czech Republic and Scotland each have one.
No Easy Skating: As the Orange and Black embark on its first season as a member of the GLCHL, they will be tested night-in and night-out against one of the toughest and deepest conferences in the AHCA. Six of the nine GLCHL teams are ranked along with Tech: Davenport (fifth), Adrian (sixth), Michigan-Dearborn (12
th) and Western Michigan (17
th) are all ranked in the latest ACHA Top 25 Poll. Rochester and Oakland were also ranked, 21
st and 25
th, respectively, when they matched up with the Warriors.
Crowded Ice: The GLCHL is tied for the second most teams ranked out of any conference (five) and is also second in terms of percentage of teams ranked (55.6%) The Central States Collegiate Hockey League (CSCHL) has all five of its members ranked while the Western Collegiate Hockey League (WCHL) has six of its seven members in the poll.
Team Effort: Over 86% of the Tech roster (19 out of 22 players, excluding goalies) has recorded at least one point through 20 games this season, while 18 different Warriors have scored at least one goal and 18 different players have notched at least one assist.
