NCAA'S BEST HIT THE POND.Byline: Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. After an overtime loss in last year's final, Boston College Boston College, main campus at Chestnut Hill, Mass.; coeducational; Jesuit; est. and opened 1863. Actually a university, the school's Chestnut Hill campus comprises colleges of arts and sciences and business administration, the graduate school, and schools of nursing has another opportunity to win its second NCAA NCAA abbr. National Collegiate Athletic Association hockey championship - a half-century after its only title. The Eagles (27-11-4) face Maine (29-6-4) in the first semifinal today at the Pond. New Hampshire New Hampshire, one of the New England states of the NE United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts (S), Vermont, with the Connecticut R. forming the boundary (W), the Canadian province of Quebec (NW), and Maine and a short strip of the Atlantic Ocean (E). (30-6-3) will meet Michigan State (29-5-7) in the other semifinal. Despite last season's success, Boston College is the least likely member of what is now officially dubbed the Frozen Four. The Eagles finished third in Hockey East Hockey East Association is a college athletic conference which operates in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for men's hockey when most of its current members split apart from what is and qualified for the NCAA tournament by winning their conference tournament. ``We've got a little streak going here,'' forward Blake Bellefeuille said after Wednesday's practice. ``We're on top of our game right now. If we play our style, I think we'll come out with a W.'' Although the tournament is being played west of Colorado for the first time in its 52-year history, both teams have links to Southern California. For Boston College's seven seniors, it is a return trip to where their careers began. They played in a 7-1 loss to Miami (Ohio) in a Great Western Freeze-Out tournament game Oct. 15, 1995. For Maine's Steve Kariya, the game is his first opportunity to play at the home rink of his brother, Paul, the captain of the NHL's Mighty Ducks. The younger Kariya, a senior left wing and team captain, is a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award The Hobey Baker Award is an annual award given to the top National Collegiate Athletic Association men's ice hockey player. It is named for hockey player and World War I hero Hobey Baker. , annually presented to college hockey's top player. He leads the Black Bears with 27 goals and 38 assists. In the other semifinal, Central Collegiate Hockey Association The Central Collegiate Hockey Association is a college athletic conference which operates mostly in Michigan and Ohio, although it also has members in Alaska, Indiana, and Nebraska. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. champion Michigan State is the only outsider in what is otherwise an all-Hockey East affair. NCAA DIVISION I HOCKEY FROZEN FOUR At the Pond Today's semifinals: Maine (29-6-4) vs. Boston College (27-11-4), 1 p.m.; New Hampshire (30-6-3) vs. Michigan State (29-5-7), 6 p.m. Saturday's final: 4:30 p.m. CAPTION(S): Box BOX: NCAA DIVISION I HOCKEY FROZEN FOUR (see text) |
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