UTICA, NY – The Utica College men’s hockey team moved up two spots and is currently ranked No. 6 in Tuesday’s release of the NCAA Division III men’s hockey east regional rankings.
This week’s rankings are the third of four regional rankings that will be released to the public and they will be used to determine both NCAA tournament bids and seeding. The final rankings will be determined on March 5, as the NCAA Division III Men’s Hockey National Committee will release its bracket for the 12 team NCAA Division III Tournament. The 2017 NCAA Div. III Men’s Hockey Championship semifinals and finals will be hosted at the Utica Memorial Auditorium on March 24-25.
Utica (18-8) won the ECAC West regular season title for the third time in the last five seasons and will host Hobart College in the conference tournament championship game on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Pioneers finished the regular season with a program-best 12-2 ledger in conference play. UC dominated conference play this season, outscoring their opponents 57-28.
The Pioneers recently battled to a thrilling 4-3 victory over Neumann University in the conference tournament semifinals at the Utica Memorial Auditorium last Saturday night. Sophomore Zach Borsoi (Brossard, Quebec/Gloucester (CCHL)) netted a career-high two goals, including the game-winner with just over two minutes to play, to lift the Pioneers to a one goal victory.
Utica’s 18 wins are the second most wins in a single season in program-history and the Pioneers have now won eight of their last nine contests. Utica is advancing to its third ECAC West title game in the last four years and fifth overall in the program’s 16-year history. The Pioneers will host the Statesmen on Saturday in search of their first conference tournament title in program-history. The last time Utica won over 18 games in a single season was back in 2013 when the Pioneers won 21 and advanced to the NCAA Division III Championship Semifinals in Lake Placid, NY.
