CAL WHO? CAL U!

2008 ACHA Men's Division III National Champions!!
championship website

Congratulations to the following players:

Tim Johnson, Goaltender - Tournament MVP
BJ DePaoli, Forward - First Team, All Tournament Team
Matt Warco, Defense - Second Team, All Tournament Team

BJ DePaoli, ACHA Division III Player of the Year

BACK TO BACK College Hockey East Champions!!
2007 & 2008

Cal U Hockey is Currently Looking to Add Women's Team for Upcoming 2008-2009 Season. Check back for details.

Program Highlights:

• CHE Team is a member of the College Hockey East and American Collegiate Hockey Association, Division 3.
• CHA Team is a member of the Collegiate Hockey Association.
• All practices and home games at Bladerunners-Bethel Park.
• CHE schedule is 25 to 30 games; CHA schedule is 20 to 25 games.
• CHE Team is the defending champions of the CHE and has earned two appearances at the ACHA-D3 National Tournament in the past three years.
• Two on-ice practices per week in the evenings for each team.

All practices and home games are located at:
Bethel Park Blade Runners
305 Church Road
Bethel Park, PA 15102

For directions, go to www.arenamaps.com or visit the rink page.

Weekly Practices

Tuesdays - 9PM CHE (Cal I) & 10PM CHA (Cal II)
Thursdays - 8:30PM CHE (Cal I) & 9:30PM CHA (Cal II)

CALIFORNIA, PA (March 19, 2008)ŠThe California University of Pennsylvania Hockey Club concluded a brilliant season by winning the American Collegiate Hockey Association's (ACHA) Division III national championship game with 7-3 victory over San Diego State University at the Rochester Recreation Center in Rochester, Minnesota on March 16. There are 124 teams in Division III club hockey.

Coached by Justin Berger, Cal finished the season with an amazing 29-1 overall record and one day before winning the national title Cal avenged its only loss of the season topping previously unbeaten Northern Colorado, 7-5. The Vulcans opened the ACHA national tourney with a 9-4 victory over Old Dominion. In 2007 Cal lost was eliminated in the first round.

Senior goalie Tim Johnson was named the tourney Most Valuable Player while fellow seniors B.J. DePaoli and Matt Warco were named to the first and second All-Tournament Teams respectively. DePaoli was also selected as the ACH III National Player of the Year.

Mirroring the Pittsburgh Penguins’ scoring duo of Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby, DePaoli led Cal in scoring with 84 points in 22 games played with 34 goals and 50 assists. Senior forward Matt Ward produced 72 points with 37 goals and 37 assists. Cal scored six or more goals in 26 of their 30 games.

Before winning three games at the national tourney, Cal won the College Hockey East Regional for the second consecutive season. After a 14-3 drubbing of Robert Morris’ Division III team, Cal iced the title with a pair of victories over Penn state-Altoona by scores of 6-5 and 5-2. DePaoli, who scored two goals with eight assists in the three games, was selected as the Regional tournament Most Valuable Player. He has led the CHE in scoring each of the past three seasons. Johnson was tabbed as the CHE Goalie of the Year. Dan Tonini, Nick Posa, Brandon School, Matt Bohn, Steffan Shaw, Brandon Patterson, Joe Powell and Jeremy Hill also stood out for the Vulcans.

On the return trip from the national tourney in Rochester, Minn, the team was escorted over the final few miles to California by police cruisers and fire trucks.

The California Vulcan’s ice hockey team showed why they are the dominant team in the College Hockey East this weekend. Saturday afternoon, the Vulcans traveled to Indiana to face-off against IUP for a rematch of last years CHE championships. The Vulcans played a solid game and stayed out of the penalty box. While IUP was spending their time taking penalties, the Vulcans were on an aggressive power play attack. Five for ten with an extra man, the Vulcans made an 11-1 statement. BJ Depaoli and Matt Warco each scored three goals. Coach Justin Berger said, “We are a different team this year. We are playing smart and skating away from the chippy play. Teams can not afford to be in the box against us.” In 14 games, the Vulcans have a 2.93 goals against average. After 14 games last season, their goals against average was a 3.00. Sunday, the University of Pittsburgh traveled to Bethel Park Blade Runners to play the Vulcans. President Angelo Armenti met with the team before the game to wish them good luck and discuss the continuing success of the university’s sport’s programs. The Vulcans held a commanding 6-0 lead after the first period. The Vulcans never looked back and finished the game with an 18-2 victory. BJ Depaoli, Matt Ward, and Ryan Jones each tallied a hat trick, while Dan Tonini and Anthony Battista each had two goals. Defensive powerhouse, Justin Petach tallied his first goal of the season, and BJ Depaoli tallied his 300th point as a Vulcan. Two weeks ago, Depaoli passed all time point’s leader, Jamison Roth with his third goal against George Washington University. Next week, the second set of National Rankings will be posted where the Vulcans should hold their number one spot in the Atlantic Region. On Saturday, the Vulcans will open play in the CHE-MET Showdown. Their first opponent will be Farmingdale State University, who holds the number five spot in the Atlantic Region. Sunday, the Vulcans will play the number two team in the Atlantic, the University of Albany.

Friday night, the Vulcan’s CHA team played Medaille College for the first time ever. Medaille is a new team from Buffalo, New York. As one of the top teams in the CHA, the Vulcans came into the game very lackadaisical. The Vulcans had too many turnovers and did not play sound defensive hockey. The game was close, but Medaille capitalized on many Vulcan breakdowns and won the game by a score of 8-5. On Saturday, the Vulcans look to turn their play around with a home game against Allegheny College.

The California Vulcan’s ice hockey team is riding a tidal wave of momentum after their performance in Midland, Michigan this past weekend for the Seth Schupan Memorial Tournament. On Thursday, the Vulcans were matched up against Oakland University. The Vulcans opened some eyes when they came out flying at the drop of the puck. Oakland managed to score only one goal against the Vulcans, who tallied an astonishing eleven goals. Forward, Matt Ward, said, “I knew how good we were and expected to win by at least five goals.” He went on to say that other teams did not expect them to make any noise at all.

Friday night, all eyes were on California and their second opponent, the University of Northern Colorado. The winner of this game would contend for the championship trophy on Saturday night. Northern Colorado was a very fast and physical team that seemed to match up well against the Vulcans. Saturday night, players from other teams in the tournament were on their feet, around the plexiglass of the ice rink. The lead changed four times, before Northern Colorado finally took a 7-5 lead that the Vulcans could not overcome. Northern Colorado reserved their championship spot with a 7-6 victory over the Vulcans. Ward said, “They were a good team, and they were the only team that could skate with us.”

With the bitter taste of defeat in their mouths, the Vulcans played Calvin College on Saturday, a team who beat them in the first round of the 2007 National Tournament. The Vulcans never gave Calvin a chance to be in the game, and tallied an impressive 9-2 drubbing to take third place in the tournament. Ward finished by saying, “Although this was an early tournament in the year, all of the number one teams from last year’s nationals were there [California, Tennessee, Northern Colorado, and Hope].

The Vulcans first line of BJ Depaoli, Matt Ward, and Dustin Roux tallied a total of thirty-six points in three games. Depaoli lead with seventeen points, while Roux tallied ten and Ward had nine.

The first set of national rankings will be posted at the end of the week, and the Vulcans will see where they stand compared to their region as well as the rest of the nation. This weekend, the Vulcans travel to take on Penn State Behrend and the University of Pittsburgh.

The Vulcan’s CHA team took on rival CCAC on Friday at Bethel Park Blade Runners. The game was very physical and up beat. Both teams were flying up and down the ice, but the Vulcans were too much for CCAC. The Vulcans won this old fashion shoot-out with a 7-6 score. This weekend the Vulcans will take on West Virginia University and Carnegie Mellon University.

The Vulcan’s ice hockey club started their season with an exhibition game against Division-I opponent Duquesne University, Friday night. Last year, the Dukes put a 10-1 drubbing on the Vulcans in a pre-season exhibition match-up. This year was quite a different story, as the Vulcans have a young, talented recruiting class along with an experienced veteran line-up. In the Division-I world, the Dukes have earned a number 21 ranking in the nation.

In front of a sell out crowd, the Vulcans came out sloppy, while the Dukes wasted no time jumping on the scoreboard, and taking a 2-0 lead. The Vulcans quickly changed the momentum of the game when sophomore, Anthony Batista, put California on the scoreboard to end the first period with the Dukes leading by one goal. The second period was a different story for the Dukes, as the Vulcans controlled all aspects of the game. Freshman, Ryan Jones, made his debut as a Vulcan by scoring the team’s second goal to tie the game. The Vulcans kept the pressure on as Matt Ward gave the Vulcans their first lead of the game. The second period ended in a 3-3 tie, as the Dukes made it clear that they were not going away.

The Vulcans lost their momentum when they could not stay out of the penalty box. The Dukes showed their Division-I experience when they capitalized on many power play opportunities. The Dukes scored four unanswered goals to take a commanding 6-3 lead on the Vulcans. The Vulcans, Ryan Jones, scored a late third period goal to make the score 6-4. Senior leader, BJ Depaoli, tallied three assists, while goaltender, Tim Johnson, made thirty-nine saves.

This weekend, the Vulcans travel to Neville Island Sports Center to take on division rival, Robert Morris University. Sunday, they will have a chance at redemption against the Dukes once again.

California’s CHA team starts their season this Friday with a home match-up against the University of Pittsburgh. The following night, the Vulcans will face Carnegie Mellon University.

“Play like you’re in First, Train like you’re in Second.” This slogan represents the mentality that the California Vulcan Ice Hockey team has as they embark on a new season. After four days of an intense training camp, on and off the ice, the Vulcan’s are a step ahead of their competition.
The Vulcan’s have made a few changes with their coaching staff. Assistant coach for the CHA team, Chris Byrne, has been replaced by Dave Yanko, who is an alumnus of Vulcan hockey. Chris Byrne recently accepted a teaching job in Florida. Dave Fryer, CHE assistant coach, recently accepted the head coaching job at Duquesne and has been replaced by goaltending coach, Pat Kenney. The Vulcan’s also picked up a new head of recruiting. Sean Rogan will be in charge of recruiting players all year round as the Vulcan’s are constantly looking to expand and better the program. After a successful regular season and a disappointing showing at the national tournament last year, the Vulcan’s are a veteran team that has a lot to prove.
On September 28, the Vulcan’s face a Division-I Duquesne team in a pre-season battle. Following their pre-season match-ups, the Vulcan’s travel to Michigan for an Early Bird tournament where the top teams in the nation will be competing for a high, early season ranking. The Vulcan’s plan to keep up their hard work, on and off the ice, helping them to become the best team in the nation by the end of the season.