The College Hockey South Division 3 playoffs took place Feb. 23-25, 2024, in Lakeland, Florida. The top eight teams made the trip to the Lakeland Ice Arena with hopes of being crowned conference champions.
The standings set the stage for the playoffs, with the University of Miami leading the pack as the No. 1 seed, followed by Florida Southern College at No. 2, Kennesaw State University at No. 3 and the University of Alabama at No. 4. The remaining teams, including the University of Tennessee, Florida Tech, Florida State University and the University of Florida, battled fiercely for their place in the playoffs.
The action kicked off with Alabama facing off against Tennessee in a high-stakes showdown in game one. Despite their effort, Alabama fell to Tennessee with a final score of 5-3. Peter Hoffman (9), Trevor Lundy (97), Nicholas Carline (98), Duncan Pugh (81) and Erik Paulhardt (44) led the offensive charge for Tennessee, while Rhys Gulotta (91), Rocco McCullen (24) and Brendan Vatz (3) responded with goals for Alabama.
In game two, Kennesaw State delivered a dominating performance, taking down Florida Tech with a resounding 7-2 victory. Jayden Price (18) showcased his skills with four goals, supported by Ashton Nulty (19), Hudson Orgeron (93) and Daniel Cotnoir (22).
Game three saw Florida Southern emerge victorious over Florida State with a convincing 5-1 win. Paul Rigolini (9), Matthew Fromer (55), Michael Woll (93) and Bradley Peterlin (18) found the back of the net for Florida Southern, while Josh Shames (72) netted the lone goal for Florida State.
Miami asserted its dominance in round one, putting up an impressive 13-2 victory over the University of Florida. William Cincotta (10) and Thomas Ferry II (59) led the charge for Miami, supported by a strong offensive effort from Devon Mussio (77), Raymond Owens (12), Jaret Fensterstock (13), Ricky Castracani (22), Kyle McGuire (8) and Elian Estulin (20). Hugh Leahy (79) and Xavier Morris (18) contributed goals for the University of Florida in a hard-fought matchup.
As the playoffs progressed, Florida State secured a 6-4 victory over Florida in the seventh-place game, while Alabama defeated Florida Tech 10-3 to claim fifth place. Tennessee defeated Kennesaw State 3-2 in the third-place game.
In the championship game of the CHS Division 3 playoffs, Miami delivered a commanding performance, defeating Florida Southern with a 4-0 win. Mathieu Schneider (61) and Ferry II (59) led the offensive charge with three points each, supported by Christopher Kourgelis (19), as Miami secured the Pictsweet Cup.
With his three point performance, Miami’s Mathieu Schneider was awarded the Verbero Most Valuable Player of the Championship Game.
ABOUT College Hockey South: Founded in 2008, College Hockey South is a 30-school, 50 team intercollegiate hockey conference spanning eight southeastern U.S. states that competes in AAU College Hockey. College Hockey South is a 501(c)3 not for profit organization.
Comments