Maine hopes to ace the postseason, PairWise

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There was a lot at stake in Friday night’s Maine-Boston College Hockey East semifinal.

Despite the fact his Black Bears were 13th in the PairWise Rankings that mimic the NCAA Tournament selection process, Maine coach Tim Whitehead felt his Black Bears were fine in the NCAA tourney picture.

However, in two of the last three seasons, Maine didn’t reach the Hockey East final and wound up being sent to regionals at the University of Michigan and the University of Minnesota.

They wound up meeting the host teams in the opening round and were beaten 2-1 by Michigan and 1-0 in overtime by Minnesota.

When they won the Hockey East championship with the 2-1 triple-overtime win over UMass two years ago, they remained in the East and wound up going to Albany, N.Y., where they won their two regional games to reach the Frozen Four in Boston.

There was still an outside chance the Bears could miss the NCAA Tournament, “but there would have to be a whole series of upsets around the country. We look pretty solid [to make an eighth straight NCAA Tournament appearance],” said Whitehead.

“By the same token, we want to get the best possible seeding into the national tournament and we’d also like to win another Hockey East championship,” added Whitehead.

Entering Friday night’s game, there were four teams in the four major conference tournaments ranked behind Maine in the PairWise rankings.

Dartmouth, which played Harvard in the ECAC semifinals, was 16th; Northern Michigan, which faces off against Miami of Ohio in the CCHA semis, was 17th; St. Cloud State, which took on Minnesota in the WCHA semis, was 18th; and Colgate, which met Cornell in the ECAC semifinals, was tied for 23rd.

If one of those teams wins their conference tourney, that would take a spot away from Maine if the Bears lost to BC.

There were also two teams breathing down Maine’s neck that were eliminated in the first round of their conference tournaments: Colorado College (14th) and Denver (15th) from the WCHA.

Since Maine beat Denver twice, it would be difficult to see Denver being selected over Maine if the Bears lost to BC. However, Maine did lose to Colorado College.

Nebraska-Omaha, ousted in the first round of the CCHA playoffs, was ahead of Maine in a tie for 10th with Hockey East semifinalists Boston College and New Hampshire.

Whitehead said that with four Hockey East teams very much in the NCAA picture, it could be “a very strong year for our league, which we need.”

Last year, all the Frozen Four participants were from the WCHA.

Another factor that could influence the NCAA tourney pairings could result from the consolation games from three of the conferences – CCHA, ECAC, and WCHA – in which a victorious bubble team could move up.

Roy providing motivation

Yarmouth’s Travis Roy was on hand for Friday’s Hockey East semifinals at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston.

Roy, who was paralyzed from the neck down when he hit the boards awkwardly on his first shift for the Boston University Terriers 10 years ago, said he is living in Boston and making a living as a motivational speaker.

“I really enjoy it,” said Roy, who does one or two motivational speeches a week.

“I try help people establish a set of values, set goals, and develop a positive attitude. I’m not inventing a motivational theme, but I’m applying it to my own story.”

The 20-year-old Roy, who is in a motorized wheelchair, said he loves watching college hockey, and when he isn’t rooting for his Terriers, he cheers for the Black Bears.

“Even though I’m living in Boston, I enjoy coming to Maine every chance I get. I’ll always be a Mainer.”

Marble on a roll

Topsfield native and University of Southern Maine junior forward Ashley Marble has been named to one of 10 spots on the Kodak WBCA Division III All-American women’s basketball team.

She is the first USM player to receive a WBCA All-American honor since Joanna Brown in 1998 and the fourth overall.

Bowdoin College junior Eileen Flaherty was also named to the team Thursday night at a banquet at Springfield College in Springfield, Mass.

Marble has played in all 33 games this season and went into Friday’s Division III Final Four game against Hardin-Simmons College averaging 17.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per game.

Two Bowdoin All-Americans

Senior goalie George Papachristopoulos and classmate Jon Landry, a defenseman, were both named to the RBK Hockey Division III All-American first team Friday.

Also, Colby College coach Jim Tortorella is one of 11 finalists for the American Hockey Coaches Association Division III Coach of the Year Award. Voting will take place after this weekend’s Division III Frozen Four.