The Blue Hens welcome West Virginia into the Fred Rust arena this weekend as the Blue Hens come back from the holiday break. This weekend is the start of an important stretch for the Blue Hens.
In the team meeting this week, Coach Romanella pointed out that this was now the second semester. There is still more than enough time for the Blue Hens to accomplish their goals for this year, which includes winning the division.
They are involved in a close division race this year. The Blue Hens are 5-3-1 in their division, which places them third currently. They are currently chasing Stony Brook and Rhode Island, and the Blue Hens will still get chances to play both of them. Stony Brook currently has 11 wins and one loss, while Rhode Island has 7 wins and two losses. The Blue Hens are nine points behind division leader Stony Brook. In order to get a first round bye, they will have to get past second place Rhode Island who lead the Blue Hens by three points.
However, before the Blue Hens get to Stony Brook and Rhode Island, they will have to overcome West Virginia after an extended break for the holidays.
In practice this week, the Blue Hens focused on getting their legs back. From the start of the first practice, it’s been constant hard skating as the Blue Hens regain their endurance after not being able to practice for a couple weeks.
Team captain Steve Braun says the first practice is always hard getting their hands and legs back. However he also commented that “about halfway through we are back into it.” The team certainly did not look rusty in practice despite the extra time off.
West Virginia has been successful on the road. They have a record of 7-4 on the road compared to their home record of 6-5. That road record includes the four game winning streak they had at the beginning of the season.
Forward Trey Bracy leads the West Virginia offense; he has 11 goals and 22 assists for the season. He has put up two points in each of his last two games for the Mountaineers. Gerald Clayton leads the Mountaineers in goals this year. Last time out, he notched another goal to make it 12 for the season.
The Friday January 9th game at the Fred Rust arena will begin at 9:00 PM. The Blue Hens will be in action again at the Fred Rust arena Saturday January 10th at 5:15 PM.
This is just the start of an important stretch for the Blue Hens. They will have plenty of chances to win games, as they will play 14 games over the next six weeks.
By: Tyler Fitzpatrick
