UCD's Splendid Performances Draw Raves; Ties Bring Sad Faces
January 24th, 2007; Davis, CA- The race for the final few spots in the WCRHL Division One is officially on. The UC Davis Aggies roared to life this past weekend. As if firing shots across the proverbial bow, the Aggies stormed back in to the race in the first period against Cal Poly SLO, outscoring the Mustangs 4-1. Though the Aggies let the Mustangs come back to tie the game at six --final score 6 to 6-- the call went out across the WCRHL that the Aggies were back. Read more tournament coverage here...
Schedule Announced for Davis Tournament on January 26th
January 24th, 2007; Davis, CA- The Western Collegiate Roller Hockey League has announced the following schedule for the UCD team this weekend:
Vs. Cal Poly SLO @ 11am
Vs. Evergreen Valley College @ 1pm
Vs. UC Berkeley @ 3pm
Vs. UC Santa Barbara @ 5pm
Mertens, Gedestad Return, Steggall Added; Things Looking Better for Winter
Shorthanded, Ags' Have Tough Go
Wu Scores First Goal in D1
Ags' Call Up Evan Wu, Sophomore Nervous, Very Excited
Aggies Stumble Shorthanded Through Season Kick-Off
2007-2008 Season Starts Taking Shape
The 2007-2008 season has kicked off for the Aggies. The Ags A team season kick-started last Sunday at their first practice/tryout. Added to the roster were Adam Napolitan and Tim Hughes. Hughes, the former UCSD Triton and current UCD law student, adds immediate experience on the back line while Napolitan adds speed, size, and strength. The two are expected to replace traveling D-men Mike Gedestad and Chris Mertens, who are both in programs out of the state.
Aggies Likely Bid for Nationals Ruined by "Glitch" in the System
Though they were ranked eleventh in the nation heading in to the regional tournament, the Aggies did not qualify for a birth in the national tournament. The Aggies were incredulous upon hearing this and were very disappointed when they discovered why they were not extended a bid. According to the former director
of the East Coast Roller Hockey Association, MIke Burke, the process by which a team is selected for the national tournament is very dependent on the better teams in a division finishing high at the regional tournament. The births are determined by a process aimed to reduce subjectivity that is tantamount to a draft of sorts. At the end of each regional tournament, each league director forms a "ranking list" for each team in his/her division. The process by which each team is ranked on the regional list is different for most leagues. For the WCRHL, unfortunately, the top spot is given to the regional tournament champion, the second to the regular season champion, and the rest are in decreasing order of their finish at the regional tournament. All of the regional directors then gather and select the tournament teams by drafting the best team available among those at the top of each list. Because the WCRHL regional tournament was full of upsets (the championship game was between the two last place teams, CSUSB and Chapman) the "regional list" was basically an inversion of regular season standings. As such, other teams were considered to be more appropriate for the national tournament by the committee. Though UCD and Cal Poly were objectively viewed as national competitors, because of their rankings on the list and the weakness of the teams above them, they were not selected by those choosing the tournament field. While this process underscores the consquences of a bad regional tournament, there are many who have now come to question the process by which the "regional list" is determined. Further, there has been some mention of the need to weigh the regular season more heavily in determining the aforementioned list. Click here to read this discussion...
Aggies Call Up Shenkin From B Team
Needing extra bodies in case of an emergency, the Aggies have called up B Team Captain Peter Shenkin. Though unlikely to get any playing time, Shenkin is excited to play and practice with the team. Said Shenkin, "I am just stoked to come up here and play at this level. It's the highest level of hockey I've played at because I didn't play hockey in High School. These guys are amazing and I hope I can stick around, push them in practice and maybe learn some things that I can apply to my own game. As Ebby Calvin "Nuke" LaLoosh said, 'I'm just going to take things one day at a time and try to help the ballclub. Good Lord willing, things will work out.'"
Aggies National
Ranking Climbs to Eleventh
The Aggies have earned their ranking, according to the independent rankings system. View the rankings here.
Team Looks Forward to Regionals: March 3rd in Anaheim
After dropping a "should-win" to UCSB and narrowly avoiding a late Cal Poly comeback, the Ags look forward to proving themselves at the west coast regional tournament in Anaheim, on March 3rd.
