by Mackenzie McMahon
The ACHA Hope College hockey team has defended its crown.
The team defeated the University of Michigan, 2-1, on Tuesday, March 15, in St. Louis for its second American Collegiate Hockey Association Division 3 national championship in a row. The victory capped a sterling 34-1 record for 2021-22, the most wins in a season since Hope hockey started in 1996-97.
"It was a good, tight game, I think we thought we were going to score a few more goals than we did, but did a good job at staying out of the penalty box, scored when we had the opportunities, and Mac did a great job in net and shut them down," said head coach Chris Van Timmeren of the team's final game of the season.
The team now has three national titles to its credit, earning its first in 2018.
This year's semi-final and final contests featured familiar opponents. Hope's competitor in the semi-final game on Monday, March 14, was Arkansas, which Hope had faced in the final in 2021. Michigan was Hope's semi-final opponent last year.
The No.1 Hope team took charge first on Tuesday as junior Mason Weiss (Flushing, Michigan / Michigan Connections Academy HS) found the back of the net at the 15:06 mark in the first to take the lead. The Weiss goal to give the orange and blue the edge had helpers from Colin Stecco and Gabe Gunneson (Rockford, Michigan / Forest Hills Northern).
The Wolverines found the tying goal midway through the second period, and that score would stand until three minutes left in the third.
Stecco, a junior from East Grand Rapids, Michigan (East Grand Rapids), tallied the game-winning goal, unassisted, to make the traveling fans of Hope College go into a frenzy. Freshman Maclane Schick was in net and held off the Wolverines throughout the game but especially in the third period to give Hope their third National Championship in the ACHA, and their second consecutive one. Schick stopped 22 of 23 shots faced, while the Hope College offense put up 27 total shots on the Michigan goaltender.
Schick, pictured right, received the 2022 Men's Division 3 ACHA National Championship MVP award for his play throughout the tournament.
"All the seniors did a great job of giving everything they had in their last game, the blue line of Gunny (Gunneson), Weiss and Stecco had both the goals and really dominated Michigan's defense to get us both goals," said Van Timmeren.
Watch Chris Van Timmeren's post game interview
