UMD advances to the Frozen Four with a 5-4 win over Mercyhurst. More heartbreak for the Lakers, who led 3-2 early in the third. Mercyhurst had lost its previous three NCAA quarterfinals in triple, double, and single overtime. It was another tough ending for the six Mercyhurst seniors.
UMD extends its homestand which also included its four WCHA tournament games. The UMD win creates an exciting and unfamiliar semifinal matchup with UNH. The teams have not met since the 2000-01 regular season. As uninsipring as these NCAA quarterfinal matchups have been (two repeat quarterfinals from last season, two intraconference matchups), the NCAA semifinal matchups will be compelling. UMD is the third team to advance to a Frozen Four it was hosting. The previous participating hosts were UMD, which won in 2003, and Minnesota, which placed second in 2006.
The attendance of 925 was a bit disappointing, but it was on par with the 906 from the SLU@UMD quarterfinal in 2005. A bigger disappointment is that Mercyhurst-UMD was the only NCAA quarterfinal without a videocast. It’s highly ironic that all other UMD home games were available through B2LiveTV for a one-time fee or a season pass, but consumers had no opportunity to view Saturday’s quarterfinal. The NCAA needs better support for its younger championships.
