By UNO ACHA Hockey · The University of Nebraska at Omaha (7-11-1) ACHA team, concluded the first semester with a big win (and first in program history) over the Dordt Def…
The University of Nebraska at Omaha (7-11-1) ACHA team, concluded the first semester with a big win (and first in program history) over the Dordt Defenders by a score of 2-1.
Omaha who has one of the youngest rosters in the Mid American Collegiate Hockey Association (MACHA) finds themselves back in the thick of the race for the conference tournament after a slow start in conference play. The Mavs have lost 8 games this season by 1 or 2 goals and had to learn how to win. In the last 7 games played, every game has been decided by 2 goals or fewer.
"Its no secret we are a young team, but my expectations for the team have not changed. We had to learn how to win at this level, we have 12 freshmen on the roster along with 5 sophomores and are competing. We are hitting our stride and I am proud of the progress we continue to make," Head coach Nick Harrahill said.
The youth of the team could be seen with wins over the #6 team in the country (Notre Dame 4-2) and #15 team in Dordt, but also a loss to the #84 team in East Texas Baptist (2-1.) The Mavericks while young, have also had to deal with some important injuries. Chase Mann (Fr. Sioux City, IA) along with Kolton Kane (Fr. Seargent Bluff, IA) have both missed significant time and important games due to different injuries along with Senior goaltender Kyle Wernli (Papillion, NE.) Caden Van Briesen (Fr. Worthington, MN) also just returned after missing time due to a knee injury as well.
With the youth of the team, they are still anchored by Senior leaders Logan Mercier, Andrew Kozol and Kyle Wernli. Mercier (Sr. Omaha, NE) leads the team in assists and points, Kozol (Sr. Omaha. NE) leads the team in goals and Wernli holds a .925 save percentage and 2.79 goals against average, both leading the team.
"We need to depend on our freshmen more than any other team, and a lot of these freshmen are stepping up. I cant really just single out any individual players, all of these players have came in, stepped up and are making a difference and helping us build up the program," Harrahill stated.
Charlie Shea (Kearney, NE) leads all freshmen in points with 10 goals and 5 assist for 15 points, with Chase Mann (8-6-14) and Kolton Kane (5-8-13) just behind. Cameron Moore also had to step in for an injured Wernli for a lot of the start of the season and holds an impressive .902 save percentage in his freshmen season with 3.14 goals against per game while also leading the team in minutes played.
The Mavericks find themselves behind the 8-ball in the conference tournament battle, but not out of it yet. With key games against the Creighton Bluejays (January 17/18) and Nebraska-Lincoln Huskers (February 8th,) they need to take care of all 3 of those games and also hope for a little help along the way.
UNO is also adding another Freshmen to the roster in the spring, fellow Worthington, MN native, Easton Newman who most recently was playing for the Badlands Sabres in the NA3HL. Omaha has one of the most difficult strength of schedules in the country for the 2nd half of the year with games against #10 Colorado School of Mines, #27 Creighton Bluejays, #53 Washington University St. Louis, #15 Dordt Defenders, #26 Nebraska-Lincoln Huskers and wrap up the season against #2 Air Force Academy.
"The back half of our schedule is loaded, but it is good for us. It is going to make us a better team, not just for this season, but for the years to come. We want to prove we can compete at this level because we can. We also know we need to add a few more pieces in the near future to really complete our team and get us to the next level," Harrahill closed with.
The Mavericks goals for the season are all still in play and are quite frankly playing their best hockey when it matters most. Expect a fully healed up Mavericks team January 11th and 12th against the Colorado School of Mines at Liberty First Credit Union Arena as they continue to prepare for a conference push the following weekend against Creighton.
Omaha has also recieved two early committments for 2025-2026 from Nate Mitchell who most recently played for the Saint Paul Tommies and James Shea who most recently has played for teams such as the Sioux Falls Power, Sioux Falls Flyers and Team South Dakota. Omaha also has offered 1 other players officially at this time with numerous other conversations being had with players. If you have interest in the program, you can fill out a recruiting form here : https://www.unohockeyclub.com/forms/player-recruitment-form-li0xkbnj