Evan Chlanda and the Pioneers host Neumann in the ECAC West Quarterfinals on Wednesday
Utica, NY (2-21-12)- The nationally ranked No. 15 Utica College men's ice hockey team begins post season play Wednesday as it hosts Neumann University in the quarterfinals of the ECAC Men's West Conference Tournament.
Game Time: The puck drops at 7 p.m. at the Utica Memorial Auditorium.
Get Your Clappers: The first 500 children through the turnstiles will receive a free noise maker to help cheer on the Pioneers, courtesy of the men's hockey program.
Ticket Info: All tickets will be general admission. Adult tickets are $5.00 and non-Utica College students are $2.00. All Utica College students, faculty, and staff can get in for free with a valid Utica College ID. As a playoff game, season tickets cannot be used and there will be no reserved seating. Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, February 21st at the Utica Memorial Auditorium box office.
Listen Live: For those who cannot make it out to the Aud, the game will be broadcast live locally on WTLB 1310 AM – ESPN Radio or online at
www.espnur.com.
Conference Tournament History: The last time UC hosted a conference tournament game was during the 2004-2005 season when it defeated Elmira 4-3 in double overtime in the semi-finals before falling to visiting Manhattanville in the Championship game … The Pioneers have not made it past the semi-finals of the tournament since the 2005-2006 season.
Against Neumann: Utica is 14-18-4 all-time against the Knights … The Pioneers are 0-6-1 in their last seven meetings against Neumann including a 5-2 loss in the conference tournament last season… The Knights have knocked UC out of the conference tournament in four of the last five years.
Home Ice Advantage: The Aud has proven very helpful, as Utica has gone 11-3-2 at home this season… UC has outscored its opponents 71-37 on home ice so far this year… The Pioneer faithful have come out in droves, averaging over 3,000 fans per game, including the first sell out in program-history.
In the Record Books: Senior captain
Tim Coffman (Elverson, PA/Laconia (AJHL)) now holds the program record for career assists (80) and points scored (138) and he recently tied the record for goals (58) after tallying two goals and one assist against Manhattanville on Feb. 4th.
Scoring Leaders: Junior
Evan Chlanda (Islip, NY/Springfield (EJHL)) leads the team with 15 goals scored and is averaging 1.33 points per game… His 33 points is tied for second in the league… Sophomore
Trever Hertz (Jaffray, British Columbia/Quesnel Millionaires (BCHL)) is third on the team behind Coffman and Chlanda, with 12 goals and 18 assists in 25 games this year.
--- www.ucpioneers.com ---
