The second round of official American Collegiate Hockey Association rankings were released Dec. 12, and after a tough showing over the last month the SRJC hockey team now sits at no. 11 in the Pacific Region.

Falling out of the no. 6 spot was expected after a challenging 10-game span that resulted in a 2-5-3 record. Despite playing relatively well in those games, the fall in rankings seems to be based on strength of schedule since SRJC still owns a respectable 12-6-3 record. 

While current rankings have the team just out of reach of a top 10 spot needed for February’s Regional Tournament, the Polar Bears are confident they can bounce back in the next rankings cycle.

“I think the rankings reflect that even with the tough stretch in November the [rankings] committee is still leaving the door open for us to creep back into the Regionals talk,” said head coach Mike Kovanis. “We have a good schedule against very solid DII programs in January and early February, which will hopefully allow us to get back into the top 10.”

With a month off from competition, SRJC can finally have some much-needed rest since starting the season in September. This will allow the team to recover and refocus on what is ahead. 

“It’s unfortunate we lost players to serious injuries and some guys not staying committed to their teammates by not attending the Iowa trip, but the guys who are here and committed have what we need to play a strong second semester and meet our season goals,” Kovanis said.

The team will face several high-caliber teams in the New Year, including Division II squad Boise State and new opponent University of Nevada, Las Vegas. These games will have a direct impact on the next set of rankings, which will be announce in late January 2015. 

The SRJC Polar Bears move up one position in the Pacific when the American Collegiate Hockey Association released its secondary ranking last Monday. Now ranked 4th, The Polar Bears are looking at a berth to the ACHA Pacific Regional Tournament taking place in Nebraska in mid-February.

During the ranking period the SRJC Polar Bears won 4 games including hard fought battles against the 4th ranked Northern Colorado University.

ACHA Secondary Rankings:

1            Arkansas
2            Aurora University
3            Colorado State
4            Santa Rosa Junior College
5            Northern Colorado
6            Metro State University of Denver
7            Robert Morris University
8            Northern Arizona University
9            Marquette University
10            Wyoming

Click to view the entire ACHA rankings.

The American Collegiate Hockey Association released the preliminary rankings on Friday, which has the SRJC Polar Bears in the 5th spot for the Pacific region.  This starting position is 8 spots higher than the Polar Bears’ starting position last season and places them securely in a regional playoff picture. 

Teams ranked #1 and #2 in the final ranking period in February receive an automatic bid to the national tournament, teams ranked #3 through #10 attend the regional tournament to battle for the last two spots at the national tournament.

The Polar Bears play #3 University of Northern Colorado Tonight at 5:30pm at Snoopy’s Home Ice.  This game will have a huge impact on the second rankings when they are released in early December.  This game is being considered the most anticipated game of the season for the SRJC Polar Bears. Fans are asked to arrive early to ensure setting is available.

2013-14 Preliminary Rankings:

Rank      Pacific Team                                   
1            Arkansas                       
2            Aurora University Blue           
3            Northern Colorado           
4            Marquette University           
5            Santa Rosa Junior College           
6            Robert Morris University            
7            Northern Arizona University           
8            Colorado School of Mines           
9            Missouri State University           
10          Metro State Univ. of Denver                       
11          Wisconsin-Platteville           
12          Bradley University                                   
13          Wyoming                                   
14          Nebraska                                   
15          McKendree                        

The American Collegiate Hockey Association released the preliminary rankings on Friday, which has the SRJC Polar Bears in the 13th spot for the Pacific region.  This starting position is 2 spots lower than the Polar Bears’ starting position last season and places them 3 spots out of the regional playoff picture.

Teams ranked #1 and #2 in the final ranking period in February receive an automatic bid to the national tournament, teams ranked #3 through #10 attend the regional tournament to battle for the last two spots at the national tournament.

Click to view the entire ACHA rankings.