ACHA Press Release - The University of Illinois won its 2nd ACHA Men's Division 1 National Championship, defeating Lindenwood University 4-2 at the ESL Sports Centre in Rochester, NY.
Captain Drew Heredia led the way with 2 goals, one on the power play and one-short handed, en route to being named the 'Joe Battista' Tournament Most Valuable Player. Daniel Cohen and Tom Connell each netted a power play goal to complete the scoring for Illinois. Larry Kopecky have Lindenwood the lead with a short-handed goal in the 1st period, while Travis Bokina tallied a power play goal that pulled the Lions within a goal at 3-2. Connell’s goal made it 4-2 with 10:30 left in the 3rd period to put the game out of reach. Illinois’ Mike Burda had 34 saves in goal, while Grahame Lippert stopped 38 for Lindenwood.
Illinois has won 2 of the last 4 ACHA Men's Division 1 National Championships contested.
Positions 1-16 in the final ranking were based on the national tournament. Positions 17-25 were voted on by the coaches, as during the regular season.
The 2009 ACHA Men's Division 1 National Championships will be hosted by the Gilmour Academy in Cleveland, OH.
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| 2007-2008 Season Rankings |
| Ranking |
Date |
| Pre-Season Ranking |
September 21st, 2007 |
| Ranking #1 |
October 5th, 2007 |
| Ranking #2 |
October 19th, 2007 |
| Ranking #3 |
November 2nd, 2007 |
| Ranking #4 |
November 16th, 2007 |
| Ranking #5 |
November 30th, 2007 |
| Ranking #6 |
December 14th, 2007 |
| Ranking #7 |
January 18th, 2008 |
| Ranking #8 |
February 1st, 2008 |
| Ranking #9 (*) |
February 13th, 2008 |
| Final Ranking |
March 14th, 2008 |
(*) - Top 16 Teams and League Champions Qualify for National Tournament
(Rankings do not determine tournament seeding) |
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