Flames debut at No. 3 in ACHA Division I men’s hockey rankings
9/27/2021 4:49:35 PM | Men's D1 Hockey
Liberty University’s ACHA Division I men’s hockey team, off to a 2-0 start after shutting out Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 9-0, and rallying for an 8-4 triumph over North Carolina State University on Sept. 17-18, debuted at No. 3 in the ACHA DI National Rankings, released on Sunday.
Defending national champion Adrian College received 17 of the 22 first-place votes to return as the No. 1-ranked team in the ACHA, followed by Lindenwood University, which got the other five first-place votes and moved up three spots from its No. 5 season-ending ranking.
The Flames, who were ranked as high as No. 2 going into the postseason before finishing 12-5 and ranked third, reached the ACHA National Championships “Frozen Four” for the first time since 2008 this past season. Liberty was eliminated in the national semifinals by Minot State, April 20 near St. Louis. The Beavers, who host the Flames Oct. 15-16 in Minot, N.D. before visiting the LaHaye Ice Center (LIC) Feb. 4-5, start the season as the No. 4-ranked team in the ACHA.
Liberty Head Coach Kirk Handy doesn’t want the rankings to serve as a distraction for the Flames as they prepare for this Friday’s and Saturday’s series at the LIC.
“For us, we’re just going to focus on where we’re at and trying to be the best we can for this weekend’s games against Michigan-Dearborn, which is ranked eighth in the country,” Handy said. “Our guys are going to be ready to go and I have full confidence in our guys for this weekend.”
Indiana Tech, Iowa State, and Ohio, which Liberty played nine times last season, winning eight, debut at the Nos. 5, 6, and 7 ranking positions. Michigan-Dearborn, which did not play last season due to COVID-19, appears at No. 8, followed by Jamestown (N.D.) and Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV), which round out the top 10.
Liberty will face Jamestown Oct. 18-19 on the end of its Fall Break trip to North Dakota before entertaining the Jimmies Feb. 18-19 at the LIC and host UNLV Jan. 28-29, with the second game of that series the third and final Midnight Mayhem matchup of the season. In all, at least 28 of the Flames’ 34 games on the 2021-22 season schedule are against opponents ranked in the Top 25.
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer