Arizona State Sun Devils Ranked Number One !!!

Arizona State University takes over the top spot in the 2013-2014 ACHA Men’s Division 1 Ranking #5.  The polls have now switched over from the coaches poll to the computer based ranking for the remainder of the season (see description below on how it works).  The Sun Devils kicked off Western Collegiate Hockey League inaugural season action by taking to the road and beating Oklahoma in overtime and sweeping Central Oklahoma.  Minot State University, the defending ACHA Men’s Division 1 National Champions, dropped out of the top spot for the first time this season.  Should both teams take care of business the next couple of weeks, it could be a battle of unbeatens for the top spot on November 21 in Tempe, AZ, the lone meeting of the regular season between Minot State and Arizona State.    Central Oklahoma vaulted all the way up to #3, its highest ranking in team history, while Robert Morris Illinois bumps up a pair to #4 and Iowa State remains at #5.
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Big winners in the computer ranking this week were: #9 Stony Brook (up 5 spots); #11 Arizona (up 6 spots); #16 Mercyhurst (up 8 spots); #20 Colorado State (up 6 spots); and #21 Villanova (up 5 spots).
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Here is how the ranking is going to work using the computers:  The ACHA will use the 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 come 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 A until the Top 25 teams are listed.
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The computer ranking will for the first time determine the 20 teams that qualify for the 2014 ACHA Men’s Division 1 National Championships, which will include the following seven autobids:

• (CSCHL) Central States Collegiate Hockey League
• (CHMA) College Hockey Mid-America
• (ECHA) Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association
• (ESCHL) Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League
• (GLCHL) Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League
• (NECHL) Northeast Collegiate Hockey League
• (Host) Delaware

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Over the past eleven seasons, 9 different schools have won the ACHA Men’s Division 1 National Championship: Lindenwood (2), Illinois (2), Davenport, Delaware, Minot State, Oakland, Ohio, Penn State, and Rhode Island.
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Beginning its 23rd season of action, there have been a total of 11 schools that have won the ACHA Men’s Division 1 National Championship:
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• Penn State (5 times)
• Ohio (4 times)
• Illinois (2 times)
• Lindenwood (2 times)
• North Dakota State (2 times)
• Davenport
• Delaware
• Iowa State
• Minot State
• Oakland
• Rhode Island

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57 teams will compete for this year’s title, including four new teams.  The University of Colorado and Colorado State University have moved up from Men’s Division 2, while Wayne State University moves up from Men’s Division 3.  Also joining the fray is Rochester College, a new team located in Rochester, MI.  Youngstown State University and the University of Rochester have dropped out of Men’s Division 1.
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The sixth ranking of the regular season will be released on Tuesday, October 29, 2013.
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The 2014 ACHA Men’s Division 1 National Championships will be hosted March 6-11 by the University of Delaware at the Fred Rust Ice Arena in Newark, DE. This will be the third year of the 20-team format.
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2013-2014 ACHA Men’s Division 1 Ranking #5
Rank	School Name	Record	Previous
1	Arizona State	10-0-0	2
2	Minot State	6-0-0	1
3	Central Oklahoma	8-6-0	11
4	Robert Morris (IL)	8-0-1	6
5	Iowa State	10-1-1	5
6	Delaware	8-1-0	7
7	Liberty	10-1-0	9
8	Oklahoma	5-1-3	3
9	Stony Brook	6-2-1	14
10	Lindenwood	3-5-0	10
11	Arizona	5-4-0	17
12	Ohio	7-2-1	13
13	Adrian	8-3-0	4
14	Davenport	4-2-1	12
15	Navy	6-3-2	18
16	Mercyhurst	7-2-1	24
17	John Carroll	6-4-1	19
18	Illinois	5-5-1	8
19	Rhode Island	9-1-0	15
20	Colorado State	3-5-0	NR
21	Villanova	5-2-1	NR
22	Oakland	6-4-0	16
23	Rutgers	3-4-1	21
24	Buffalo	7-3-1	22
25	North Dakota State	1-5-0	NR

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