Millersville vs. Kutztown
November 13th, 2011The Broadcaster’s View — A Season to Remember
November 7th, 2011Jordan Kuhns
Media Director, Broadcaster
Sometimes it’s hard to believe this may be my last season calling Ville Hockey, but what a season it is to have a sendoff. The Marauders are 7-1-1 in GNCHC play, and life is simply just peachy for the team, coming off one of the toughest ends to a season that any team could ever suffer. Very akin to what the Dallas Stars went through last season as well.
That’s in the past, now. Right now, the Marauders’ wealth of scoring options and solid defensive work have catapulted them past a lot of the favorites in the league for the past several years. Kutztown? No problem, we’ll beat you 4-1. Scranton? We’ll beat you 9-4. How about TCNJ, a team that’s getting national ranking votes? We’ll go ahead and beat you 5-4. There’s a new sheriff in town, and it’s the Millersville Marauders.
At times last season, it was Evan Miller and Mike Carpenter carrying the scoring. Early on, they were cold. It was up to new people and a few other seasoned vets to take control. Kyle Hench scored several monumental goals, including a thrilling game winner against LaSalle in the season opener. After a cold start himself in the point department, Sean Nielsen has turned it on. Zach Juliano continues to develop as a playmaker in his second year with the team. Teams are having trouble checking the new Marauder third line, which was highly apparent in their dominating win over St. Joe’s a few weeks ago.
Senior netminder Bryan DeMarco is having a season to remember, posting a 2.52 goals against average, and a .910 save percentage. The native of West Chester continues to be the solid force between the pipes for this dominating team that looks poised for a huge run in the GNCHC playoffs in February.
Coach Scott Edwards has this team believing. The emotion he presents after losing just goes to show how much he hates losing, and how much he thrives on winning. Thankfully, he hasn’t been too frustrated this season.
Be sure to see these men put on a show against Kutztown on Saturday, November 12 at Lancaster Ice Rink. The puck drops at 5:15 PM.
Team to Hold Diabetes Benefit Sunday
September 23rd, 2011Jordan Kuhns
Media Director
Millersville University’s ice hockey team announced that it will host the inaugural “Drop the Gloves Against Diabetes” benefit event on Sunday, September 25 at 7:00 p.m. at the Student Memorial Center’s multipurpose room.
The benefit event will feature many different activities, including local musical acts from the greater Lancaster and Philadelphia areas, as well as routines from Millersville University’s own Expressions dance team. Members of the hockey team will also be selling t-shirts and refreshments. Additionally, there will be prizes given away through a raffle, including a pair of tickets to a Philadelphia Flyers game.
Sara Heller, the event’s coordinator, brought the event to fruition for the community, as well as for the budding hockey team.
“It’s going to be really fun,” Heller said. “People will see that [the team is] doing the benefit. They will get to see who they are and what they are capable of.”
The event will be hosted by two of the standout characters on the team, Pete Scottoline and Zach Juliano.
“There’s no better way to get our name out there than to join something that’s worthwhile,” Scottoline said. “The benefit should not only raise money for a good cause, but hopefully people will take notice of our club.”
Heller said the event is raising funds for an American Diabetes Association (ADA) walk on October 2, adding that the hockey team was gracious enough to sponsor this year’s event, and to give it a unique identity.
Her drive to raise funds for this cause is a personal one.
“Members of my family have diabetes, and it’s something that is very common,” Heller said.
So common in fact, that 25.8 million people of all ages are affected by this debilitating disease, according to the ADA. Also, 1.9 million more people were diagnosed with diabetes in 2010. Its prevalence is becoming hard to deny. Events like this make sure that efforts to find a cure for this disease continue.
Scottoline made sure to note what events attendees should get excited for.
“Not the humor by me,” Scottoline joked. “The acts that are performing will be very talented. There’s a comedian that might be upset if we’re more funny than he is.”
Forward Mike Carpenter is looking forward to the team’s first diabetes fundraising effort.
“I know it is going to be a good time for everybody,” Carpenter said. “We have a lot of great prizes to give away so I know that is going to be a hit.”
“People need to realize that this is a terrible disease and anything that [the team] can do to help will make a difference.”
Last year’s team captain Evan Miller echoed that thought.
“I’m very proud of the team for taking part in sponsoring the event,” Miller said. “The whole team hopes everyone there has a great time.”
90% of the proceeds will be going to the Harrisburg branch of the American Diabetes Association. The event’s tickets will be sold at the door of the multipurpose room. The cost is $5.00 for the general public, and $3.00 for students with a Millersville ID. Dress is on the formal side of business casual.
Marauder Uprising
August 27th, 2011Jordan Kuhns
VilleHockey.com Writer
Team Broadcaster
The Great Northeast Collegiate Hockey Conference has changed its divisional layout by adding yet another division, and by adding a few more teams to the conference. The Millersville Marauders were placed in a division with several new teams. The team has a lot more experience than these other teams, and that’s where forward Mike Carpenter believes they have the edge.
Mike Carpenter shields the puck away from a defender.
“With the incoming of new teams such as Gettysburg, Seton Hall, TCNJ, among others, we feel like we’re still going to be on top,” Carpenter said.
The Marauders finished last season on a sour note, tying Muhlenberg in the last game of the season when a win was necessary to make the playoffs. Much of this Marauder team will remain untouched from last season, including the stalwart defense core, ready to come back with a vengeance with new players in tow.
“With the return of Sean Nielsen, Chris Collins and Chris Reinhart, three core guys, our top three, they’re gonna be able to teach the young guys the system real fast,” said Carpenter. ”They [Collins and Nielsen] are pretty offensive minded, and Reinhart, he does the defensive side, nobody really gets past him.”
“I think our defensive core will really, really help us out this year.”
The majority of the scoring last year was carried by Carpenter as well as Evan Miller and the aforementioned Sean Nielsen. This year, the team has the ability to spread the scoring, including two returning players including last year’s transfer student from UMBC, Kyle Hench, and a second-year player in Mike Grass.
Kyle Hench battles in front of the net vs. Scranton.
Mike Grass skates in full stride.
“A guy who’s going to go out there and work hard every day, grind it out is Mike Grass. He’s just gonna be in there, and his goals will come,” Carpenter said. ”He’s not gonna get pretty goals, but hey, if the puck goes into the net, the puck goes in the net.”
Carpenter predicts Hench, who had 18 points last season, will start on one of the top two lines, and Grass, with 8 points last season, may be on the third line. Grass’ impact though, according to Carpenter, will come in the way of checking the opponent’s top lines and being ready whenever he’s called upon.
A lot of the Marauders’ recent success after being a weaker squad has come in the form of recruiting. Recruiting became a top priority right alongside winning.
“Our recruiter, Tom Hench, has done a huge job this year. He’s been amazing.” Carpenter said. ”We go to showcases and talk to kids who we think will be a good fit for us. We’re getting kids from Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, we’re trying to get kids from all over.”
“Millersville ice hockey is not a scrub team anymore. We’re for real. This is real college hockey. We go out and play good teams, and we want to win a championship. Recruiting is going to be a big part of that.”
“I believe this year we have a good group of rookies. This year is just going to build on that.” Carpenter concluded. ”The recruitment style that Tom Hench has done has been absolutely amazing for this club.”
The season starts in less than a month, with an outstanding majority of the games on the road throughout the season. Carpenter and the Marauders feel they are ready for a bonafide run to the GNCHC championship, as well as ACHA regionals and perhaps nationals. He stressed that this is the last chance for a lot of the departing seniors this year.
The pieces are in place.
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Stay tuned to VilleHockey.com for the latest on your Marauders! Follow the team on Twitter (@MUIceHockey), or the team broadcaster Jordan Kuhns (@jckuhns). Tune in to select future Millersville hockey games at justintv.com/villehockey and request the viewing password. Get all the of the game highlights and postgame reaction here on the website, or at youtube.com/millersvillehockey!
“Heroes” – History Will Be Made
March 24th, 2011Marauders force tiebreaker for playoffs with 2-2 tie
February 13th, 2011The Marauders received some good fortune when they had heard Scranton had lost to both Muhlenberg and Bucknell. The game seemed cut-and-dry enough–win and they’re in, lose and they’re out.
But nothing is ever that easy.
After getting in a good amount of penalty trouble, the penalty kill was spot on, killing off all of Muhlenberg’s dangerous powerplay opportunities. The defense seemed to key on Muhlenberg’s top scorers Cody McKinney and Andrew Milanesi by cutting off all of their solo opportunities.
On a turnover at center ice in the second period, sophomore defenseman Chris Collins bagged his fifth goal of the season on a blocker side wrister that fooled goaltender Connor McWilliams. The Marauders continued to play stifling defense, and things were looking up.
The optimism rose when forward Mike Carpenter pounced on a loose puck in the goal mouth, bashing in a rebound for a 2-0 lead in the third. That goal was his 15th of the year.
The momentum switched in an instant with five minutes to go, as third-leading scorer on the Mules, Rich Nolan, potted two goals in the span of 30 seconds to tie the game at two. All the Marauders had fought for had been for naught, as overtime was forced.
Towards the end of the third, the Mules took a penalty, but the Marauders were unable to score on the powerplay that had stretched into the overtime session. Millersville was in all-out attack mode, realizing what the season had come down to. Mike Carpenter streaked right up the middle on a 3-on-2 break, but was unable to capitalize, shooing the puck wide.
The real story of this game was senior netminder Bryan DeMarco. His performance in the overtime alone was simply brilliant. He robbed McKinney with a snag with the glove as well as on a 3-on-0 rush, and he stopped Milanesi on a clear cut breakaway.
It’s safe to say DeMarco saved the season several times.
Now Millersville and Scranton are tied in the standings. It all comes down to a tiebreaker for a berth in the GNCHC Playoffs.
Marauders lose early lead, fall to NJIT
January 29th, 2011Jordan Kuhns
Team Broadcaster
VilleHockey.com Webmaster
The five-game winning streak and strong play from the Marauders was on the line, but the streak came to an unfortunate end at the hands of the New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders by a score of 7-5.
Things were looking up when Zach Juliano scored two quick powerplay goals, grabbing a lead right out of the chute. But the Highlanders fought back quickly, tying it up with powerplay strikes of their own, and after the second goal, seven seconds later, NJIT grabbed another goal to take the lead.
The Marauders wouldn’t get the lead back in the game, but they fought back several times to tie the game up until it was deadlocked at 4 with a top shelf shot by Bobby Snyder, his eighth of the season.
NJIT’s Jason Anagnos and Corrado Mancini played a huge role in this game, scoring the goals that would give NJIT the victory. Evan Miller’s goal early in the third looked to put the Marauders in a position to come back, but it was for naught.
“I think that if we played the whole game like we played in the 3rd, we probably could have won,” said senior forward Pete Scottoline, who bagged two assists in the game. ”But losing [Kyle] Hench, and having [Carpenter] sick and not taking many shifts was probably the worst part.”
Before the game, coach Scott Edwards warned that the flu bug was going through the room. And it couldn’t have come at a worse time for the black and gold. But there were no excuses from the team.
“I think we need to have a sense of urgency. we need to realize that it’s do or die tomorrow pretty much,” said Scottoline. ”And how Kutztown disrespected us in our own rink.”
And so the season comes down to one crucial matchup in the heart of the Lehigh Valley.
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For updates on the team, follow the team on Twitter @MUIceHockey! For highlights to select games (this one will be uploaded this week), go to YouTube.com/MillersvilleHockey.
Marauders Stomp Diplomats
January 29th, 2011Jordan Kuhns
Team Broadcaster
VilleHockey.com Webmaster
Who said there was diplomacy in hockey? The Marauders sure didn’t think so.
Millersville picked up their eighth GNCHC win and continued their playoff push with a romp of the Franklin & Marshall Diplomats, 16-2. The Marauders, with a few healthy scratches, were up against a hapless Diplomats team with only eight skill players and two goaltenders.
All it took was three minutes for the Marauders to get on the board. Forwards Sean Darrah, Garth Bolin and Evan Miller gave the Marauders the only real push they needed and were in complete control of the game after that.
The Marauders were cruising along in the second period with a 6-1 lead, but when F&M forward Evan Jones found a rebound with a gaping net, senior goaltender Bryan DeMarco went all Tim Thomas on him, diving across the goal mouth and making a spectacular save.
“The guy took a shot from the point, and I was really far out of position,” said DeMarco. ”I got lucky with the leg pad … and then I went into a desperation split. [The puck] hit me in the face, and went out of play.”
Sophomore forward Josh Schultz picked up his first collegiate hat trick in his first game back from a wrist injury that kept him out for most of the first semester.
“It feels pretty good,” Schultz said of the hat trick. ”I’m feeling really good. [The wrist] is back to 90%. The doctor said that’s as good as it’s gonna get.”
It’s just the beginning of a tough weekend, however, as the Marauders will take on New Jersey Institute of Technology on Saturday, and Kutztown University on Sunday. The game on Sunday will be the most crucial of the weekend, and not just because it’s in enemy territory.
“We gotta try to get some of the younger guys in against NJIT so we can save some legs for Kutztown,” said Miller. ”It’s the league decider–whether or not we get into the playoffs.”
Before the playoffs, adjustments must be made.
“We gotta work better in the defensive zone,” said DeMarco. ”We gotta keep playing our game. We’re on a five-game winning streak, so we have to keep it going.”
The Marauders didn’t practice in their usual slot on Wednesday, so this game against an opponent like the winless Diplomats was a good test to get their legs under them.
“It was good to get some of the younger kids ice time,” said Miller. ”We got to work on some stuff, and get ready for the weekend.”
Let the playoff push continue.
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Check the schedule tab for time and location of upcoming games! Follow your Marauders on Twitter @MUIceHockey. For video highlights of select games, go to youtube.com/millersvillehockey.
The Broadcaster’s View – Playoff Push Starts Now
January 22nd, 2011Jordan Kuhns
VilleHockey.com Webmaster
Team Broadcaster
The Marauders started their season with hopes of this being the year. Going into the second semester of play and the final stretch of games, the team is the third seed in the Great Northeast Collegiate Hockey Conference’s Western Division with a 7-3-1 record, good for 15 points.
The Marauders have played 11 games, but their closest competition, Scranton University, has 12 points through 10 games. It will be crucial to win a good majority of the games ahead to have a good standing in the playoffs. Muhlenberg is undefeated with ten wins, and Kutztown is in second place with 15 points. It will be tight, but if you look at the competition ahead, the playoffs should be attainable for the Marauders.
This would be their second trip to the postseason dance in as many years behind this experienced core of players looking to make a statement.
Last year, Millersville upset Muhlenberg in the first round to fall to Scranton in the second round in a close 2-1 tilt. This year, the playoff spectrum looks a lot different, but the Marauders are in the mix once again.
A look at some standouts on the team:
Captain Evan Miller, the senior, is being Evan Miller. And by that, I mean that Miller is scoring goals with reckless abandon. This year he has 18 goals and 11 assists for 29 points. His career high of 25 goals is in reach. His philosophy as captain has energized this team into a consistent force. He stresses “never be satisfied”, no matter what the score. And this team has taken that energy and moved forward, winning most of their games in the GNCHC.
Mike Carpenter is having a tremendous junior season with 14 goals and 16 assists in GNCHC play. Carp, as they call him, has six powerplay goals and a few hat tricks to go along with that play. He’s a consistent force on the ice, and his consistent play (and frequent fist pumping) will be a big key to the Marauders’ success coming up. Carpenter has recently eclipsed the century mark in points with 103.
Transfer student Kyle Hench has been a source of consistent goal scoring for the Marauders. His two goals were the deciding factor in the rough-and-tumble win against the Bucknell Bison. Hench seems to be always in the right spot for a rebound, and will continue to get the goals.
On the defensive side of the puck, look no further than sophomore Chris Collins, who has had a resurgent sophomore season for the Black and Gold. Collins, an alternate captain for the Marauders this season, has 4 goals and 13 assists for 17 points. Collins is not just a good offensive defenseman, but he has played extremely solid defense, and has made great passes on the powerplay. The big dude has been a good find for Marauder recruiting.
Defenseman Sean Nielsen is poised to be a star on this Marauder team in the future. In his first season, the roving defenseman (who sometimes seems like a forward) has oozed confidence with 6 goals and 9 assists, good for 15 points. He’s always involved in the play, eager to take slapshots and beat defenders with dekes that several GNCHC players wish they could pull off. Look for Nielsen’s slapper to be an important part of the Marauder push to the playoffs.
Game recaps will be available postgame (I promise) after every game, including quotes from the players. Highlights will be available for some of the games coming up as well. Stay tuned to VilleHockey.com for the latest information on your Millersville Marauders. Also, be sure to follow @MUIceHockey on Twitter, and go to www.youtube.com/millersvillehockey or www.youtube.com/rhnielsen68 for highlights of earlier games.
Marauders Complete Weekend with Two Wins
December 5th, 2010Story Coming