Air Force faces Wayne State in CHA Tournament
3/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Hockey
March 10, 2003
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This Week: Sixth-seeded Air Force (10-23-3, 2-15-3 CHA) faces third-seeded Wayne State (18-16-2, 11-7-2) in the first round of the fourth annual College Hockey America Tournament, March 14, at the Tri-City Arena in Kearney, Neb. Faceoff is at 3:05 p.m. CST. The tournament is hosted by Kearney Hockey, Inc., and the Air Force Academy. All six CHA teams qualify for the single-elimination tournament. The winner of the Air Force-WSU game plays second-seeded Niagara on Saturday at 3:05 p.m. CST.
Radio/Television: Both games will be broadcast live in Colorado Springs on KBZC AM 1300. The pregame show begins 20 minutes prior to faceoff. Jay Ritchie, in his sixth season of Air Force hockey, will do the play-by-play. No television.
Follow the Falcons Anywhere: Both games can be heard anywhere in the United States via the telephone. Falcon hockey radio broadcasts can be heard on TeamLine by dialing 1-800-846-4700. The team access code is 0671. This service is free of charge to listeners thanks to the Air Force Academy athletic department. Hockey games can also be listened to on the internet at www.AirForceSports.com. Go to the hockey page and click on Listen to the Falcons on the right side of the screen. The broadcast schedule for the remainder of the season is on page 11 of this release.
Tournament Pairings: Alabama-Huntsville won the regular-season title with 28 points. Niagara, who swept UAH in the final regular-season series, was second with 27 points. Both teams received first-round byes. Alabama-Huntsville will play the winner of the #4 Bemidji State-#5 Findlay game on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. Second-seeded Niagara will play the winner of the #3 Wayne State-#6 Air Force game on Saturday at 3:05 p.m. The championship game is scheduled for Sunday, March 16, at 5:05 p.m. CST.
Automatic Berth: For the first time in the four-history of the league, the CHA will receive an automatic berth in the 16-team NCAA Championships. The tournament champion will receive the automatic bid and will play in the first round of the NCAA Championships the weekend of March 28-29.
Neutral Site First Ever: This year marks the first time the CHA will have its tournament at a neutral site. The first two CHA Tournaments were played at Alabama-Huntsville. Last year's tournament was held at Niagara.
National Leaders: Andy Berg has scored just one power-play goal in the last 11 games and is still tied for second place in the nation with 15 (along with Colorado College's Tom Preissing). He has led the nation in that category for most of the season. Miami's Greg Hogeboom leads the nation with 16. As a team, Air Force is 12th in the nation in penalty minutes, averaging 18.2 per game.
Zwiers Sets Ironman Record: In his four-year career, senior winger Scott Zwiers has never missed a game. He broke the Air Force career games played record in the second game vs. Bemidji State, March 8. His 146 career games played broke the record of 145 set by Scott Bradley in 2001.
Berg Ties Two Single-Season Records: Andy Berg's 15 power-play goals have tied the school record set by Mark Manney in 1981-82. Since joining a Division I conference, Berg's 21 overall goals tie Derek Olson who scored 21 in 2001-02.
Berg Chases Career Power-Play Mark: Andy Berg's 33 career power-play goals are just one shy of tying the record of 34 set by John Decker (1992-95).
Elite Company: Andy Berg's 21 goals this season are nearing some elite company. Just one Air Force player has scored 25 or more goals since 1980. With at least one game remaining, Berg could join Frank Daldine who scored 28 in 1984-85 as the only players with 25 or more goals in the last 23 years. Chuck Delich set the school record with 44 in 1975-76.
Berg and Zwiers Climb Up the Charts: Seniors Andy Berg and Scott Zwiers continue to climb up the career scoring list at Air Force. Berg has 142 points (63-77) in 137 games and is 13th on the career scoring list. Zwiers has 123 points (51-72) in 146 games and tied for 23rd.
Reaney Among Top Defensemen in AFA History: With 22 points this season, senior Brian Reaney has 69 career points to tie for ninth in scoring among defensemen in Air Force history.
Close Only Counts in Horseshoes: Air Force has played numerous close games this season and has come up on the short end. Air Force has played in 15 games that have been decided by two goals or less and is 4-13 in those games. The Falcons are 2-6 in one-goal games and 2-7 in two-goal games. Air Force is 0-0-3 in overtime this season.
Four is Magic Number: Many coaches will tell you that the first team to four goals has the best chance to win the game. Air Force is proof of that theory. The Falcons have scored four or more goals in just 11 of the 34 games this season and the team is 10-1 in those games. However, when the Falcons score three or fewer, the team has a 0-22-3 record.
Playing From Behind: Air Force has trailed in 26 of the 36 games this season and that has been a recipe for disaster for the Falcons. Air Force is 4-19-3 when the opponent scores first. On the flip side, when Air Force scores first, the Falcons are 6-4 this season. The opponent has scored first in each of the last 10 games. The last time Air Force scored the first goal of the game was in a 5-3 loss to Bemidji State in late January. In Air Force's 20 CHA games, the Falcons have trailed 17 times.
Offense Continues to Struggle: The Falcon offense continues to struggle scoring goals. In the last six games, Air Force has lit the lamp just seven times. The Falcons are averaging just 2.7 goals per game while allowing 3.9. Air Force is averaging just 2.25 goals per game in CHA contests, the second-lowest scoring average in the league. In the last 19 games, Air Force has scored four or more goals just twice and is averaging 1.7 goals per game.
Scoreless Stretch: Air Force was shut out in consecutive games for the second time this season. The Falcons were blanked against Colorado College and Denver in November. Beginning midway through the third period at Wayne State, March 1, Air Force enters the tournament having not scored in 123 minutes and 53 seconds. Mike Knaeble's goal at 15:07 of the third period was the last time the Falcons lit the lamp. In shutout losses to CC and DU, Air Force was scoreless in 131:40.
Winless in 14 CHA Games: The two losses to BSU extended Air Force's CHA winless skid to a school-record 14 games. AFA's last CHA victory was a 6-2 win over Findlay at home on Nov. 22. AFA was 1-7-2 in the CHA at home and 1-8-1 on the road.
Last Week: Air Force was swept by Bemidji State, 5-0 and 2-0, at the Cadet Ice Arena.
