By UNO ACHA Hockey · The University of Nebraska at Omaha Mavericks ACHA team has played in the MACHA conference already for 2 seasons coming into this year. The team had…
The University of Nebraska at Omaha Mavericks ACHA team has played in the MACHA conference already for 2 seasons coming into this year. The team had 0 wins next to their name in conference play. That all changed in the 2023-2024 season. It all started with a team believing in itself and wanting to push itself to the next level.
"I came in for my first season in May and I remember meeting with some of the leadership team for a lunch, the boys wanted to be good. They wanted to take that next step. That leadership group made the decision that this season was going to be different." - Head coach Nick Harrahill sai d.
Different it was. The Mavericks swept both in state rivals, the Nebraska-Lincoln Huskers (4-3 OT, 3-2 OT, 4-3 SO) and Creighton Bluejays (4-2, 8-2) along with a program high 14 wins on the season. It was easy to look on paper and expect the Mavericks to finish at the bottom of the standings again this season, but the team had different plans.
"Making the conference tournament is a huge step in the right direction for our team and this program," Freshmen Camden Forys mentioned, "Making the conference tournament after most people expected us to finish last in our conference shows our grit and determiniation. This is huge for the future of our program because players looking for a team will now take us seriously and know we mean business as a growing program."
It has been a long journey for many of the players. Logan Mercier, Ryan Huppe, Jack O'Loughlin, Jon Savoie and Kyle Wernli have been with the program since their first official season in 2021-2022 where they finished 4-6-1 (0-5-1 in conference) on the season and followed it up with a 5-16-1 record (0-7-1 in conference) for the 2022-2023 season. The team has an overall record of 14-10-3 this season and 4-3-1 in coference play.
"This is a spot I never thought this program would be in four years ago. Going from being last in the division and never having won a conference game, to now going undefeated against our in-state rivals and getting our first MACHA tournament bid in program history, Senior Ryan Huppe exclaimed, making the tournament for the first time means everything to this program and serves as a major stepping stone for years to come. You can sense a complete culture shift within this program. This team has built the foundation of what Maverick hockey is going to be for years to come. This is only the beginning, we're here to stay."
Like any season, there was positives and negatives. Not everything went great, but the common theme of this team was resilency. For example, the team started the season off 0-3 in overtime games, including a heartbreaker to the University of Kansas on a controversial goal call, but ended up finishing the season with 5 more overtime games, winning all of them. A flip switched on the team who once the calendar flipped to 2024 have a 5-2 record, feel they can give any team a tough game.
"I had confidence that we could make it from the start when I saw the initial roster. Once we swept Lincoln and stayed with Dordt in the Defender Days game, I knew we could make the tournament," Sophomore Troy Hunsicker stated. "Everything fell in place for us at the end with the final game against Creighton being the decider. We handled business."
Now the teams goal of making the conference tournament has been reached. The opportunity to surpass their season goals sit in front of them. The Mavs close out the regular season with a pair of home games against the #23 University of Kansas Jayhawks at Baxter Arena, 9:30pm on Friday and 10:00am on Saturday. The team then ships out to Maryville University where they will take on the #1 overall seed in the conference and #4 team in the country, University of Missouri Tigers.
The Mavs and Tigers played earlier in the season back in November where in game 1, the Tigers took the game 7-4 but doubled up the shot total 62-31 against the Mavericks. Game 2 was declared a no contest after a freak accident when a Missouri player and #19 Gabe Chubb of Omaha made contact that left Chubb in the hospital for numerous days. Thankfully, Gabe is on the road to recovery, back in classes and attending all games with the team cheering on his teammates.
After the incident, the Tigers and Mavericks formed a special bond, numerous messages and outreach from the Missouri players, staff and families including visits and meals to the Chubb family while Gabe was still there leave an imprint on the family and the team. Now these two teams will drop the puck again in the night cap of round 1 of the MACHA playoffs at 8:00pm on February 9th. Don't be mistaken, the 8 seeded Mavericks know it is a tall task in front of them to take down the defending MACHA champions and top 4 team in the country, but the belief of what the team can do will not escape the locker room.
"We just have to play our game, take it to them quick and get a couple goals fast. They are a great team which is why they are the defending MACHA champs. I believ…