CLUB SPORTS ‘mdash;’ ‘ ‘ ‘ Made up of former ’90s kids who never gave up on the art of rollerblading, the UCSD roller hockey team has created a quiet legacy over the past three years as an elite Division-II squad. The Tritons have gone to the last three national championships, finishing in the top eight each time ‘mdash; most recently placing third.
This season, UCSD’s astonishing 16-1-1 overall record has once again earned the team a spot at nationals. This year, for the first time in the program’s eight-year history, the team will enter nationals with a regional championship under its belt.
‘I’ve been on this team for four years and we lost in the [regional] championship game the first three,’ senior defender Jeff Ponton said. ‘It was a great feeling to finally come out on top and win our school’s first title.’
After coming out to a slow start in the playoffs, managing only a 2-2 tie with Cal Poly Pomona on Feb. 28 in Irvine, the Tritons’ road smoothed out, allowing them to sail easily through to the championship game.
‘We came out flat-footed in the first game and everybody was trying to do everything,’ head coach Brian Keefe said. ‘We were moving our feet too slow. We started to get in a good rhythm and good flow after the first game. We just needed to shake the cobwebs out.’
The Tritons advanced to the semifinals after a 4-2 win over the University of San Diego in round-robin play. In the semifinal contest, UCSD was once again pitted against the Broncos ‘mdash; the same team that overpowered the Tritons for the regional crown a season ago. UCSD gave Cal Poly Pomona no chance at a repeat championship, pummeling the Broncos 9-1 and advancing to the final against the University of Southern California.
Having defeated the Trojans twice already during regular season play, UCSD battled past USC using a 3-0 first quarter advantage to dominate the Trojans in the final. The Tritons led for the entire game, eventually taking a 5-1 victory.
‘We started to click as a team, and when that happens we run the game,’ senior defender Lafe Ball said.
Even though the team won a championship, the relative ease with which UCSD took the crown left the Tritons wanting more.
‘This year, the caliber of teams at regionals wasn’t the same as it usually is,’ Keefe said. ‘It felt great and we’re excited that we’ve won, but we want to prove ourselves nationally and take care of business.’
The Tritons will have that chance as the No. 1 seed in their pool at the national championships April 2 to April 5 in Feasterville, Pa. A total of 16 teams will compete in round-robin play for the first round of the Division-II tournament, and UCSD’s opening pool includes Truman State University, University of Texas ‘- Dallas and Kennessaw State University.
‘Nationals is definitely going be a battle for us every game,’ Ponton said.’ ‘There are some real solid schools out there, but we have a great team. As long as we play our game and work hard we can compete for the title.’
According to Keefe, most of the teams at nationals have been playing together for a few years, improving every season.
‘Most teams haven’t changed too much since last season and all these teams did something right to get there,’ he said. ‘It should be pretty tough.’
Readers can contact Janani Sridharan at [email protected].