National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association

National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCRHA)
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2012–13 NCRHA season
Sport Inline hockey
Founded August 1, 2003
Inaugural season 2003–04
Director Brennan Edwards
Country United States
Headquarters Torrance, California, United States
Continent North America
Related competitions Division I
Division II
Division III
Junior College Division
B Division
Official website NCRHA.org

The National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCRHA) is an "incorporated not-for-profit corporation" which operates a national collegiate inline hockey league consisting of five divisions of competition (Division I, Division II, Division III, Junior College Division and B Division). Headquartered in Torrance, California, the NCRHA is the national governing body of college inline hockey. The National Collegiate Roller Hockey Championships is held annually to determine the national champions at the end of each season.

The league was organized on August 1, 2003, after the suspension of operations of its predecessor organization, the Collegiate Roller Hockey League (CRHL), which had been founded 1998. The NCRHA draws many highly skilled players from all over the United States. The NCRHA is not affiliated with the governing body of most college athletics, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

History

The origins of the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association can be traced back to the spring of 1994 when it was developed as an in-line program to the Pacific Collegiate Hockey Association, a collegiate ice hockey league in California. While the league was small with only three teams, Cal Poly Pomona became the first league champion that year. The other two teams participating were USC and UCLA. Only a few months later the league grew in popularity and added two new schools, El Camino College and Moorpark College. But not only did the team selection get bigger, but so did the league itself. In the 1994-95 season, the PCHA renamed itself the Collegiate Inline Hockey Association, and became reorganized.

After renaming the league, the CIHA would experience massive growth by adding two new schools, University of San Diego and UC Santa Barbara in the spring of 1995. By the fall of 1995, Cal Poly, Ventura College, Pepperdine, Cal State Fullerton, UC Irvine and UNLV all joined the still young league.

By the spring of 1996, even more teams were joining the league as Pierce College and Loyola Marymount signed on to play. The league also decided to once again change its appearance and name and so from after the spring of 1996, the league would now be recognized as the National Collegiate Inline Hockey Association. Not only did the name change, but so did the season layout to a single, yearly championship that would not only encompass the West Coast, but the entire nation.

The first national championships were held in Las Vegas, Nevada for the fall season of 1996. The tournament was held in unison with the National In-line Hockey Association. El Camino College defeated Purdue 4-3 in a shootout to win the first NCIHA National Championships. In their first season of competition, Saddleback College won the 2nd NCIHA National Championships again held in Las Vegas, by defeating UNLV 9-3. The event was hosted by USA Hockey Inline.

In 1998, the 3rd NCIHA National Championships were held once again in Las Vegas for the third straight year. Missouri-St. Louis would defeat Cal Poly 3-0 in the championship game. The 1998 event was hosted by Roller Hockey International-Amateur.

Due to the expansion, the NCIHA had witnessed not only in the west coast but nationwide, the league decided to implement a different internal organization and so the Western Collegiate Inline Hockey League became a region of the newly formed Collegiate Roller Hockey League. The WCIHL and four other leagues nationwide would be separated to play in regional tournaments, but then meet up at the national level to determine which team would be the best in the United States. Teams would be broken into two divisions, Division I and Division III. In 1999, the CRHL National Championship Tournament I took place in Chicago, Illinois. Michigan State would defeat UC Santa Barbara 5-4 in the Division I championship game on a goal scored by captain Mike Mackert. Grossmont College would earn the championship in Division III play.

In 2000, CRHL National Championship Tournament II was played in Ellenton, Florida, a census-designated place south of Tampa. Michigan State repeated as Division I champion defeating Colorado State 5-4 in the championship on a goal scored with 3.9 seconds left by Ed Kruschka. St. Charles Community College defeated Elgin Community College 12-5 for the D-III championship.

In 2001, the CRHL expanded with a Division II division. In 2003, the league came to the decision to add a Premier Division for its more well established clubs such as Lindenwood, Michigan State, Ohio State and Michigan. The decision proved unsuccessful.

On August 1, 2003, the Atlantic Collegiate Roller Hockey Association, Eastern Collegiate Roller Hockey Association, Great Plains Collegiate Inline Hockey League, Southwest Collegiate Hockey League, Southeast Collegiate Roller Hockey Association and Western Collegiate Roller Hockey League parted from the national governing body, the CRHL, and announced the creation of the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association. By September 1, 2003, the Midwest Collegiate Roller Hockey League and newly formed Rocky Mountain Collegiate Roller Hockey Association had joined as Member Organizations of the NCRHA, bringing the total to eight. In March 2005, the ACRHA and the SCRHA merged to form a new organization the Southeastern Collegiate Roller Hockey League.

Organizational structure

Executives

Board of Directors

Game

Main article: Inline hockey

Each National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association game is played between two teams, 4 skaters aside, and is 36 minutes long. The game is composed of three 12–stopped clock periods with an intermission of one–minute between periods. At the end of the 36–minute regulation time, the team with the most goals wins the game. If at the end of regulation time, both teams are tied with the same number of goals, the game shall go to a 3 on 3-five minute sudden death overtime. If neither team scored after the 5 minutes have elapsed, a winner shall be declared by a shootout.

Ties do not occur during tournament format (such as regional and national championship tournaments) where a winner must be declared to advance to the next round of play. In these cases, sudden-death 12–minute four-on-four periods are played until one team scores. The first team to score a goal in the overtime period shall be declared the winner and advance to the next round.

Inline hockey rink

Main article: Inline hockey rink

National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association games are played on a rectangular inline hockey rink with rounded corners surrounded by walls and Plexiglas. As nearly as possible, it measures 80 by 180 feet (24.38 by 54.86 meters) in the NCRHA, with the minimum size of 65 by 145 feet (19.81 by 44.20 meters) and a maximum of 100 by 200 feet (30.48 by 60.96 meters). The center line divides the rink in half, which divides floor into two attacking zones. Near the end of both ends of the rink, there is a thin red goal line spanning the width of the floor, which is used to judge goals.

Season structure

See also: List of NCRHA seasons and Season structure of the NCRHA

The National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association season is divided into an exhibition season (October), a regular season (from October through February), regional championships (March) and the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Championships. During the exhibition season, teams usually play other teams in their member organization. During the regular season, clubs play each other in a predefined schedule. The regional championships are tournaments to determine member organization champions and automatic qualifiers for the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Championships. The final remaining team is crowned the national champion.

In the regular season, with the current NCRHA is divided into five divisions, and again geographically split into seven member organizations. Schedules are determined by member organizations, as well as each team. Each team plays the majority of games against intra-organizational opponents. Some teams play select games against inter-organizational opponents.

The NCRHA's regular season standings are based on a point system instead of winning percentages. Points are awarded for each game, where two points are awarded for a win, one point for a tie, and zero points for a loss. At the end of the regular season, most organizations hold a regional championship to determine its champion.

Regional champions along with a set number of at-large teams qualify for the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Championships. Teams are grouped into pools and play a round robin with teams in their respective pool to qualify for a single elimination tournament, with the remaining team being crowned national champion.

Team alignment

The current league organization divides the teams into five divisions: Division I, Division II, Division III, Junior College Division, and B Division. Teams are also group geographically into seven Member Organizations. The current organization has roots in the 2006–07 season when the Southeastern Collegiate Roller Hockey League was formed.

List of member organizations

Past Champions

Division I

Year Champion Score Runner-Up Location Semi-Finalist #1 Semi-Finalist #2
1999 Michigan State 5–4 UC Santa Barbara Chicago, IL Penn State
2000 Michigan State 5–4 Colorado State Ellenton, FL Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Penn State Altoona
2001 RIT 10–5 Lindenwood Upland, CA Boston University Truman State
2002 Lindenwood 6–4 Michigan State St. Louis, MO Purdue Michigan
2003 Cal Poly Pomona 4–2 Florida Feasterville, PA RIT Towson
2004 Lindenwood 10–3 Penn State Anaheim, CA Central Florida Florida
2005 Lindenwood 5–2 Central Florida Fort Collins, CO Michigan State Eastern Michigan
2006 Lindenwood 7–5 Michigan State Morrisville, NC Towson Eastern Michigan
2007 Lindenwood 12–2 Rhode Island St. Louis, MO RIT Eastern Michigan
2008 Lindenwood 6–3 Missouri-St. Louis Colorado Springs, CO UC Irvine Central Florida
2009 Missouri-St. Louis 5–3 Lindenwood Feasterville, PA Buffalo Michigan State
2010 Lindenwood 5–1 Arizona State San Jose, CA Buffalo Missouri-St. Louis
2011 Long Beach State 4–3 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Middleton, WI Lindenwood Rowan
2012 Bethel 4–3 UNLV Kearns, UT Eastern Michigan Michigan State
2013 Lindenwood 6–2 Michigan State Ft. Myers, FL UNLV Neumann
2014 Lindenwood 2–1 Neumann Aston, PA UNLV Hofstra
2015 Neumann 4–3 Lindenwood Independence, MO UNLV Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Division II

Year Champion Score Runner-Up Location Semi-Finalist #1 Semi-Finalist #2
2001 Eastern Michigan Ball State Upland, CA Truman State
2002 Illinois State 2-0 Ball State St. Louis, MO SUNY Buffalo West Chester
2003 SUNY Binghamton 6-3 Neumann Feasterville, PA Maine Texas-Dallas
2004 Missouri-St. Louis 4-3 Neumann Anaheim, CA Maine Nevada
2005 Nevada 4-2 Neumann Fort Collins, CO Washington-STL Saint Louis
2006 Neumann 4-3 Missouri-St. Louis Morrisville, NC SUNY Brockport Nevada
2007 SUNY Stony Brook 4-1 Saint Louis St. Louis, MO Neumann Missouri-St. Louis
2008 Neumann 6-1 West Chester Colorado Springs, CO UC San Diego Cal State San Bernardino
2009 Grand Valley State 9-7 Central Michigan Feasterville, PA Neumann Missouri State
2010 West Chester 7-5 Southern Illinois-Edwardsville San Jose, CA Rowan Tampa
2011 Miami (FL) 4-3 (2OT) Florida Gulf Coast Middleton, WI Bethel USC
2012 Central Michigan 8-0 Pittsburgh Kearns, UT Northeastern Kansas State
2013 Colorado-Colorado Springs 3-2 (OT) Northeastern Ft. Myers, FL Kennesaw Florida
2014 Cal State Fullerton 6-2 Virginia Tech Aston, PA Rutgers Slippery Rock
2015 Farmingdale 10-5 Massachusetts Independence, MO UC San Diego UC Irvine

Junior College Division

Year Champion Score Runner-Up Location Semi-Finalist #1 Semi-Finalist #2
2000 St. Charles CC 12-5 Elgin CC Ellenton, FL St. Louis CC - Meramec Grossmont CC
2001 St. Charles CC 7-6 (OT) Grossmont CC Upland, CA
2002 St. Charles CC 6-5 St. Louis CC - Meramec St.Louis, MO Collin College Valencia College
2003 St. Charles CC 3-2 St. Louis CC - Meramec Feasterville, PA Northern Virginia CC Suffolk CCC
2004 St. Charles CC 7-2 Suffolk CCC Anaheim, CA St. Louis CC - Meramec Moorpark College
2005 St. Charles CC 6-5 Riverside CC Fort Collins, CO St. Louis CC - Meramec Suffolk CCC
2006 Riverside CC 5-4 St. Louis CC - Meramec Morrisville, NC St. Charles CC Suffolk CCC
2007 St. Charles CC 8-2 Broward College St. Louis, MO Suffolk CCC Nassau CC
2008 Broward College 8-7 (OT) Oakland CC Colorado Springs, CO St. Charles CC St. Louis CC - Meramec
2009 Saddleback College 4-3 (OT) St. Charles CC Feasterville, PA Suffolk CCC Nassau CC
2010 St. Charles CC 8-3 Citrus College San Jose, CA Saddleback College St. Louis CC
2011 St. Charles CC 3-2 (OT) St. Louis CC Middleton, WI Schoolcraft CC Santa Barbara CC
2012 St. Charles CC 3-2 Saddleback College Kearns, UT St. Louis CC Santa Barbara CC
2013 St. Charles CC 4-0 (Best-of-Seven) Saddleback College Irvine, CA

B Division

Year Champion Score Runner-Up Location Semi-Finalist #1 Semi-Finalist #2
2004 Lindenwood 10-2 St. Louis CC - Meramec Anaheim, CA Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Eastern Michigan
2005 Lindenwood 3-2 Eastern Michigan Fort Collins, CO Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Western Michigan
2006 Lindenwood 10-1 St. Louis CC - Meramec Morrisville, NC Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Eastern Michigan
2007 Lindenwood 13-2 St. Louis CC - Meramec St. Louis, MO Suffolk CC Michigan State
2008 Lindenwood 5-1 Central Florida Colorado Springs, CO UC Santa Barbara Michigan State
2009 Lindenwood 8-2 Penn State Feasterville, PA Central Florida Buffalo
2010 Penn State 6-2 Central Florida San Jose, CA Lindenwood UC Santa Barbara
2011 Lindenwood 7-6 (OT) West Chester Middleton, WI Central Florida Michigan State
2012 Lindenwood 7-1 West Chester Kearns, UT Arizona State Colorado
2013 Lindenwood 5-3 Arizona State Ft. Myers, FL Central Florida Michigan State
2014 Lindenwood 4-3 Michigan State Aston, PA Arizona State Slippery Rock

NCRHA Winterfest

Year Champion Score Runner-Up Location Semi-Finalist #1 Semi-Finalist #2
2001 Michigan State Missouri Las Vegas, NV Penn State Altoona Colorado State
2002 Michigan State 3-2 (OT) Ohio State Las Vegas, NV Penn State RIT
2003 Michigan State 5-1 Central Florida Las Vegas, NV Cal Poly San Luis Obispo RIT
2004 Michigan State 6-5 (OT) Central Florida Las Vegas, NV Towson South Florida
2005 Eastern Michigan 6-4 Michigan State Wixom, MI Missouri-St. Louis Central Florida
2006 Lindenwood 8-2 St. Charles CC St. Peters, MO North Carolina State Eastern Michigan
2007 Florida International 6-5 (OT) West Point Key West, FL Missouri-Rolla Colorado
2008West Point 4-3 Missouri-Rolla Key West, FL Colorado Florida International
2009 Eastern Michigan 5-4 Florida International Key West, FL Missouri S&T Key West

See also

External links

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