ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY DEBUTS AT NO. 1 IN AMERICAN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION MEN'S DIVISION 1 FIFTH RANKING
 
27 Teams Have Played Games So Far This Season During Pandemic
 
UNION LAKE, Mich. – (March 17, 2021) – Robert Morris University takes over the top spot in the 2020-2021 American Collegiate Hockey Association Men's Division 1 Ranking No. 5.  The Colonials (3-0-0) achieved their first ever No. 1 ranking after defeating Ohio University 6-2 at Bird Arena in Athens, Ohio on Tuesday afternoon.  Steven Ralston had a pair of power play goals set up by Nathan Mickey while Kevin Mackey turned aside 34 Bobcat shots for the win.  The Colonials power play netted 4 goals on 7 attempts.
 
While there are 72 teams fielding teams in Men's Division 1, only 27 teams have played at least one game this season so far.  To reflect these numbers, the rankings will only contain 10 teams.
 
No. 2 Adrian College (14-1-0) defeated Men's Division 2 Davenport University 8-1 on Thursday night at Arrington Arena in Adrian, Mich.  Nolan Baldrica had the 3-goal hat trick while Chris Donaldson tallied two goals. 
 
No. 3 Liberty University (6-2-0) was idle this past weekend.
 
No. 4 Lindenwood University (14-1-0) suffered its first loss of the season and dropped from the top spot after splitting a pair of road games at Ohio University.  The Bobcats recovered from its loss on Tuesday to Robert Morris in time to upset the Lions 3-0 on Friday night at Bird Arena in Athens, Ohio.  After allowing 6 goals on 14 shots against the Colonials, goaltender Max Karlenzig rebounded with a 37 save shutout performance for the win.  The game entered the third period scoreless before Ryan Hastings netted the game-winner with 7:03 remaining in the period.  Drew Magyar scored to give the Bobcats some breathing room and a 2-0 lead with 1:55 left before adding an empty-net goal with 0:27 remaining in the game.  Saturday, the Lions came away with a 2-1 victory after Zachary Mitchell broke a 1-1 tie with only 1:49 remaining in the third period.  Stephen Friedland made 30 saves for the win in goal for Lindenwood.
 
No. 5 Minot State University (13-2-1) got a win (4-1) and tie (1-1 OT) against Men's Division 2 University of Mary.  The Beavers hit the road to Mandan, N.D. on Wednesday and came away with a 1-1 tie as Riley Wallace made 33 saves and Blake Fournier tallied the only goal.  In the rematch on Friday night back in Minot, N.D., the Beavers built a 3-0 lead in the second period on goals by Carter Barley, Adam Wowryk, and Landyn Cochrane while Chad Duran made 28 saves for the 4-1 win.
 
Rounding out the Top 10 were No. 6 Canisius College (2-3-0), No. 7 Ohio University (2-13-0), No. 8 Lawrence Tech (2-0-1), No. 9 Indiana Tech (13-5-1), and No. 10 Iowa State University (12-7-1),
 
The Central States Collegiate Hockey League leads the way with three of its member teams ranked while the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference has two of its member teams ranked.  College Hockey Mid America, Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League, Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League, and Northeast Collegiate Hockey League each have a single team ranked.
 
The ACHA uses two computer rankings generated by USHSHO.com, Ranking A (Wins with Maximum Goal Differential of 7) and Ranking B (Wins with Maximum Goal Differential of 1), and comes up with an average of the two rankings.  The ACHA will then use the list generated from the average for its weekly ranking.  Ties will be broken using the higher ranked team from Ranking B until the Top 10 teams are listed.  All games that go to overtime will be scored as ties in the computer ranking.
 
Over the past 17 seasons, 12 different schools have won the ACHA Men's Division I National Championship: Lindenwood (3), Central Oklahoma (2), Illinois (2), Minot State (2), Adrian, Arizona State, Davenport, Delaware, Oakland, Ohio, Penn State, and Rhode Island.
 
With the conclusion of the ACHA's 29th season, there have been a total of 14 schools that have won the ACHA Men's Division 1 National Championship:
 

• Penn State (5 times)
• Ohio (4)
• Lindenwood (3)
• Central Oklahoma (2)
• Illinois (2)
• Minot State (2)
• North Dakota State (2)
• Adrian
• Arizona State
• Davenport
• Delaware
• Iowa State
• Oakland
• Rhode Island

 
The 2021 ACHA Men's Division-I National Championships will be hosted April 16-20 for the first time at the Maryville University Hockey Center (MUHC) in Chesterfield, MO.  Due to the limited number of Men's Division 1 teams playing this season, it will be a 16-team format and will celebrate the ACHA's 30th anniversary.
 

2020-2021 ACHA Men's Division 1 Ranking #5
Rank	School Name	M1 Record	Previous	Conference
1	Robert Morris	3-0-0	NR	CHMA
2	Adrian	14-1-0	2	GLCHL
3	Liberty	6-2-0	3	ESCHL
4	Lindenwood	13-1-0	1	CSCHL
5	Minot State	14-2-1	4	INDEP
6	Canisius	2-3-0	NR	NECHL
7	Ohio	2-13-0	8	CSCHL
8	Lawrence Tech	2-0-1	10	WHAC
9	Indiana Tech	13-5-1	7	WHAC
10	Iowa State	12-7-1	5	CSCHL

 
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About American Collegiate Hockey Association
The American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) is a recognized 501(c)3 organization of almost 500 college and university-affiliated programs which provides structure, regulates operations, and promotes the quality of collegiate ice hockey throughout the United States.  Headquartered in Troy, Michigan, the ACHA's primary mission is to support the growth and development of college hockey programs nationwide.  The ACHA identifies standards which serve to unite and regulate teams at the collegiate level and entered its 30th season in September 2020. For more information, visit achahockey.org.