Archives

March 2009 - August 2009

Looking Back At Last Season

August 18, 2009 - The Tennessee Ice Vols had another banner year in the 2008-2009 season. A team led by 13 seniors reached the National Tournament at season’s end after a record setting, championship winning season.

Tennessee’s season qualified them for the ACHA South Regional as the two-seed. The Ice Vols defeated Christopher Newport and East Carolina to clinch a National Tournament berth for the third consecutive year.

Tennessee also won the regular season SECHC title after going 17-6-1, earning the top seed in the SECHC Tournament.  The Ice Vols then won the inaugural SECHC Tournament Championship.

Tennessee made the trip to Rochester N.Y. a few days later for the National Tournament. The Ice Vols carried a lead into the third period against top-seeded Hope College in the opening round but grasped defeat from the hands of victory, with injuries and penalties. Tennessee went on to win two of the three remaining games for 11th place overall.

Individually, senior captain Joe Williams set an all-time career mark at Tennessee with 301 points. Williams did so by setting season records for points, assists, and power-play goals with 102, 57, and 28, respectively. Junior Kevin Jones also tied a Tennessee season-high record with six game-winning goals.

The Ice Vols also garnered four Academic All-Americans (Daniel Grapski, Kelsey McLean, Tommy Morgan and Charles Teixeira) for their hard work in the classroom.

Williams Wins Athelete of the Year

April 26th, 2009 – Tennessee Captain and All-Time Leading Scorer Joe Williams was named the Tennessee SportClubs Male Participant of the Year on Thursday after his outstanding season on the ice. Joe became only the second player in club history to break the 100 point plateau in a single season – only 15 other players have managed to accomplish that in their entire careers.  The award is the icing on the cake in a season filled with many accomplishments for the captain.  In 2008-2009 he was named ACHA Player of the Year Runner-UP, ACHA South Region Player of the Year, ACHA 1st Team All-American and 1st Team South Region.

Tennessee Downs Georgia for SCHC Title

March 1st, 2009 – The Tennessee Ice Vols upended the Georgia Bulldogs 13-6 on Sunday to claim the hardware in the inaugural Southeastern Hockey Conference Championship (SHCC) tournament.  After blowing a three goal lead in the third and needing extra time to get past the pesky Florida Gators the night before, the Vols kept the Bulldogs from ever drawing close.

In the bronze medal game, the South Carolina Gamecocks came out on top and finished the tournament with a 2-1 record by defeating Florida.  The Gators were able to play spoilers to host Alabama, after upsetting the Crimson Tide on Friday night, but could not manage another victory on the weekend, despite taking Tennessee to overtime. 

The Big Orange will head to Rochester, NY on Tuesday in hopes for a National Title bid as they will take on perennial contender, Hope College.  The Flying Dutchmen will play host to the Vols at 7:00 PM EST on Wednesday night.