Young Stallions look to compete for national championship in club hockey

By Zach Alexander
Western Herald

Ranked No. 12 in the nation, the Western Michigan University Stallions club hockey team has kicked off its season, impressing many in the early part of the schedule.

The Stallions have compiled a 3-3 overall record while climbing from No. 13 at the start of the season to the current No. 12 ranking. The team has surprised some, especially after losing several key seniors from last year’s team.

This year’s team is led by junior Sean McWhorter, a 5-foot 10-inch, 190 pound right wing who has stepped into a leadership role. This season he has contributed four goals (tied for the team lead) and three assists.
McWhorter will participate in the 2009 World University Games as a member of the United States national team. He successfully qualified after participating in a 90-player tryout for the team.

He will head overseas to Harbin, China, on Feb. 16 to compete. McWhorter will stay in China for the games over a two-week span before returning on March 1. The games will consist of college athletes from around the world competing for their respective countries.

A 2007-08 Division I American Collegiate Hockey Association All-Star, McWhorter is looking forward to helping his team compete throughout the season.

“We would like to stay ranked in the top 16 in the country and advance past the first round of the national tournament,” he said. “And obviously we would like to win a national championship.”

The Grand Ledge, Mich. native is considered on of the most talented non-NCAA players in the nation by Stallion head coach Chris Slater.

He may have lofty goals for this season, but he has reason to believe in the team. Teammate and forward Aaron Moss has provided a lot of offense as well, with four goals to his name.

Also a key factor to this year’s team is defenseman and captain Mickey Guentner. Guentner has provided steady leadership both on and off the ice in helping his team recover from the loss of key players from a year ago.

“The team is willing to work hard in practice every day,” said Slater.

The Stallions will compete in their second annual alumni game on Nov. 1 at Kalamazoo’s S2 Arena. Following Saturday’s contest, they will compete with the club teams of several universities within the area, including Michigan State University, Eastern Michigan University, Davenport University, Grand Valley State University and the University of Illinois.

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Posted by HeraldAdmin on Oct 28 2008. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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