Oct. 26, 2009

BEMIDJI, Minn. -- Bemidji State men’s ice hockey team is ranked among the nation’s top programs in both the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Top 15 Poll and U.S. College Hockey Online/CBS College Sports Top 20. The Beavers are tabbed 15th nationally by USA Hockey and are ranked No. 14 by USCHO.com.

BSU came out of Northern Michigan University with three hard-earned points last weekend, coming back from two goals down Friday to salvage a 3-3 tie in the final seconds of game one, while it earned a decisive 5-0 victory over the Wildcats in the series finale. The three-point weekend helped BSU improve its record to 3-0-1 to open the season, the program’s best start at the NCAA Division I level since it was 4-0-0 to begin the 2005-06 campaign.

The performance at NMU garnered the Beavers 53 points to rank 15th in the nation in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll. BSU fell 27 short of No. 14 Colorado College, which garnered 80 points, and narrowly edged University of Alaska (49 points) for the final spot in the top 15. Miami University (Ohio) holds down the top spot, for the fourth consecutive week, with 490 points pulling down 22 of the 34 first-place votes.

BSU’s 53 points and 15th spot in the poll are second only to its No. 12 ranking and 194 points garnered March 30, 2009 prior to the 2009 Frozen Four appearance.

The Oct. 26 poll marks the first time the team has cracked the top 15 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll in 2009-10 but the fourth time this season it has received votes. BSU picked up 30 points in last week’s poll and would have been 17th in the nation if the poll was extended.

The Beavers find themselves among the top 15 in a USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll for just the sixth time in their Division I era, while it marks the 28th time the team has received attention in the poll.

Bemidji State received a school record 327 points in this week’s USCHO.com poll, moving up two spots to No. 14 in that publication’s rankings. BSU has a 16-point cushion over No. 15 Colorado College, while it trails No. 13 Boston College by 100 points.

The No. 14 ranking this week matches the Beavers' top billing in the publication as the team was slotted 14th in the Oct. 17, 2005 poll with 198 points.

This week’s poll marks the third consecutive week BSU has been nationally ranked by U.S. College Hockey Online. The Beavers picked up 243 points a week ago to rank 16th and sat 15th with 183 points Oct. 13.

BSU has appeared in the USCHO.com Poll more than any other in its Division I era, appearing 86 times prior to this week. However, the Oct. 26 ranking is only the 15th time BSU has been nationally ranked.

The USCHO.com/CBS College Sports Poll consists of 50 voters, including 28 coaches from the Division I conferences and 22 beat writers and sports professionals from across the country. The poll, published weekly by the Associated Press, is a joint production of USCHO.com, which provides in-depth coverage of college sports, including hockey, lacrosse, soccer and others, and CBS College Sports Networks, Inc., the only digital media company dedicated solely to college sports. CBS College Sports operates a 24-hour college sports cable network, also available via DISH and DirecTV satellite.

The USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men’s College Hockey Poll, now in its 15th year, is conducted each week in conjunction with the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA). The poll includes input from coaches and journalists representing each of the six NCAA Division I ice hockey conferences, as well as composite votes from officers of the AHCA and USA Hockey Magazine, the most widely distributed hockey magazine in the world.

The 3-0-1 Beavers’ now turn their focus to CHA play as they travel to Huntsville, Ala. Oct. 31-Nov. 1 for a two-game set versus long-time rival University of Alabama-Huntsville. The rare Saturday/Sunday series gets underway at 7 p.m. Saturday with the series finale set for a 1 p.m. Sunday matinee. Both games will be played at the Von Braun Center.

--bsu--