The team left Friday morning, making the first game that night, beating the Rebels 6-3.

CMU started slow, but never trailed.

“We struggled to get out early in the game, but seemed to kick it into gear somewhere in the late second period,” said head coach Mike Willett.

It was a different story on Saturday.

The Rebels started the scoring with a power play goal off a questionable penalty call.

CMU scored two unanswered goals, taking a 2-1 into the second period and held a 3-2 heading into the third.

UNLV scored three unanswered goals, handing the Chippewas the loss.

Senior captain Mark Morely led his team throughout the weekend in Las Vegas.

“It was a good team experience over in Vegas and the team is all coming together,” Morely said.

Willett said that was obviously not the way they wanted to head into Thanksgiving break, but the team looks forward to pick up its game against Ferris State.

“We have two big ones [games] coming up against Ferris State in a couple of weeks,” Willett said. “As a group, we need to recommit ourselves to playing a full 60 minutes.”

CMU plays FSU in a two-game series beginning Dec. 2.

It outscored the Zips 15-5 in the weekend series.

The team had a comfortable lead through the game on Friday and won 5-1.

The series finale took place Saturday afternoon, with CMU completing the sweep of Akron with a 10-4 victory. It was a close game throughout the first half. It was tied at the end of the first period.

Akron then scored an early short-handed goal, but CMU fought back, gaining a 5-4 lead at the end of the second period.

The Chippewas capped off the game and series with five goals in third period, giving them the victory and series against the Zips.

Coach Mike Willett said he was pleased that his team won the games, but not the way it expected to do.

“We have to tighten down every aspect of our game” he said. “Moving forward, our focus has to be on playing a full 60 minutes and playing disciplined hockey,” he said. “That is what it will take to beat the best in the Central Region and around the country.”

CMU has a road trip this weekend with three games, two against Northern Illinois and one against Saginaw Valley State.

Head coach Mike Willett was pleased with his team’s performance this weekend.

“This was a huge weekend for us to beat a strong Central Region opponent,” Willett said.

CMU went up early, but then the Wolverines pulled ahead. In the final period, forward Matt Cinader and captain Mark Morley each scored give the team the victory.

CMU faces off against Illinois State at Bloomington on Friday, Oct. 14 and Saturday, Oct. 15.

Through the early going, both teams came out ready for a battle with the score tight for the first two periods.

Going into the third, CMU pulled ahead, scoring five of their eight goals.

Head coach Mike Willett kept his team composed and was not surprised to see his team pull so far ahead at the end.

“Those are the types of games we need to win,” Willett said. “That little sprint we had, that’s the way we should be playing all game.”

Although Willett was not surprised to see his team let up toward the end, he was pleased to see this from his team.

“It was a nice feeling to see us step up and take initiative,” he said.

Team captain Mark Morley said he handles his team throughout close games, back and forth on the ice.

“Strong defense, sticking together, team play,” Morley said.

CMU plays against the Wolverines again on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.

Morley said he expects to be ready for the game following a solid victory.

“We just need to go home, rest, hangout, and watch the [Detroit] Red Wings,” he said.

Heading into CMU’s next game, Willett expects his team to continue right where they left off against the Wolverines.

“It [the game] was a stepping stone,” Willett said. “That was a game, where ‘hey, we’re good, but we have to work hard to be better.’”

Willett’s team looks to come out with the same attitude it ended on last night to gain ground in the ACHA standings.

CMU did just that, defeating the Lakers 7-3; they were never down in the game.

It outshot the Lakers, 58-24.

There were several penalties throughout the game, with both teams capitalizing with a goal.

CMU head coach, Michael Willett, commented on the win.

“The win means a lot, but in my opinion, it was kind of a sloppy win,” Willett said.

Although Willett saw aspects of his teams’ game that need adjustment, he was happy to get the win.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do to clean things up, but a win is a win, and well take it,” he said. “We just have to clean things up and move forward because we have some better opponents coming up,.”

The whole team came out with intensity, looking for a quick start to the season. Darcy Cook lead the team with a hat-trick.

Cook commented on how he thought the team played and how he thinks they are doing.

“I feel we played pretty good as a team,” he said. “We’ve only been out for a couple weeks now. We are learning each other and the way we play.”

Cook believes in the team’s chemistry and the heart it puts in to be the best out there.

“Our lines are running really good right now and everybody is playing their heart out and I feel like we are going to have a really good season,” Cook said.

The following day, they faced LSSU again, dismantling them, 15-1.

Football, baseball, wrestling and soccer — all sports that have won Mid-American Conference titles in the last few years.

On April 10th, another championship was added to the trophy case, although not from a place that many would expect.

The Central Michigan club dodgeball team won the 2011 National Collegiate Dodgeball Championship, hosted by Western Kentucky University.

The team, which is made up of 19 members, paid their own way to compete at nationals. Heading into the tournament 18-1, CMU defeated Wisconsin-Platteville by forfeit, Ohio State 2-1, Saginaw Valley State 2-1 and four-time defending champion Grand Valley State 2-1 to win the title.

One point is earned by eliminating all 15 opposing players. A dodgeball match is made up of two 25-minute halves.

“It was great to beat Grand Valley,” said team captain Patrick Fisher. “There very good and the only team that beat us during the regular season.”

The championship is the first-ever won by a Central Michigan club dodgeball team, who have been practicing twice a week since the beginning of the season.

“It means a lot to me and the guys to win this,” Fisher said. “We had a great season, and the fact that it’s the first time we have ever won it makes it even better.”

If you are interested in joining the club dodgeball team you can email Fisher at fishe1pd@cmich.edu or look for fliers around campus.

Coming off a 4-1 victory against the University of New Hampshire, Eastern Washing entered the game against the one-loss Chippewas with a lot of confidence. Forty seconds into the first period, the Eagles scored the game’s first goal when senior winger Kris Boyce’s shot went behind CMU goalie Matt Darr. Boyce added a second goal with two minutes left in the second to give EWU a 2-0 lead.

The second period started with CMU facing a two goal deficit and the choice to roll over and give up its chances at a championship, or fight back, play its style of hockey and keep national championship dreams alive.

CMU and the Eagles traded scoring opportunities throughout the period, until CMU senior captain Jordan Jakubik scored twice and freshman Evan Loughman added a third late in the period to take a 3-2 lead heading into the third.

CMU added two more goals in the third and earned a tough 5-3 win against EWU. But the team could only celebrate for a few moments before having to focus on the third team in their round robin group, the University of New Hampshire. To have a chance to advance to the semifinals, CMU was once again facing a must-win game.

In the first period, Jakubik took little time to find the back of the net, scoring five minutes into the game off an assist from junior Taylor Turner. The one goal lead stood until in the second period when the Wildcats tied the game.

CMU continued to look for a way back into the lead and in the closing minutes of the period, Nick Badder scored his first goal and added his second early in the third period.

CMU carried a 3-1 lead with 13 minutes left in the game.

“I thought we were going to win for sure,” Badder said. “We just did not play well in our own zone in the third.”

Things looked good early in the third, but only one minute after Badder’s second goal, UNH scored to cut CMU’s lead to one goal. The Wildcats scored again 47 seconds to the tie game and shift momentum into their favor.

For the rest of the period, everything CMU tried on the ice failed and UNH scored five consecutive to end the game, including an empty net goal with three seconds left.

Although the trip to San Jose, Calif., was not a success for CMU on the scoreboard, the season proved to be a memorable one. Their appearance at the American Collegiate Hockey Association national finals was the first in five years.

“It was a great season and I never thought we would have done so well,” Badder said. “The team is looking forward to next season and should be better than ever next year in just losing two players.”

“We didn’t get the finish that we wanted,” said head coach Michael Willett. “But the nice part is we’ve got 21 guys with more experience and know what it will take next year.”

CMU (22-13) opened the tournament with a 6-1 loss to Miami. Senior Mike Lesnau scored the lone goal for the Chippewas, but goaltender Matt Darr couldn’t stop the flurry of Redhawk shots, giving up six goals on 56 shots.

The team rallied back in the second game, knocking off Eastern Washington 5-3 on two goals by senior Jordan Jakubik. Freshman Ricky Jones picked up a pair of assists, keeping the team’s tournament hopes alive.

Willett stuck with Darr between the pipes in the team’s third game. He finished the game with 37 saves on 43 shots on goal, as the team fell to New Hampshire 6-3.

Junior Nick Badder tallied two goals Thursday, and Jakubik scored one of his own in his last game as a Chippewa.

“Jordan is a great talent and he lives and breathes hockey,” Willett said. “Another senior, Mike Lesnau, is a playmaker and I’m really going to miss coaching him. The team is going to miss those guys.”

Now, the CMU club hockey team can start packing its bags with T-shirts and suntan lotion after this weekend.

The team started their first game Saturday against Illinois State, running on adrenaline as the puck dropped on center ice. It didn’t take long for them to find themselves on the scoreboard, when in the first period captain Jordan Jakubik scored the game’s first goal and gave CMU a 1-0 lead.

In the second period, Illinois State tied the game but CMU answered back with two goals and held a 3-1 lead going into the third period. Then it took over with, an explosion of offense and scored four more goals in the third to put the game out of reach and kept their championship hopes alive.

“We were all excited for the opportunity,” said Jakubik, who scored two goals and added an assist. “ We knew we just needed one more win to go to San Jose.”

After winning their first game Saturday, CMU drew Southern Illinois University for Sunday’s game. Right away, the offense picked up right where they left off and the team scored three goals in the first period. Costly penalties and a penalty shot let Southern Illinois battle back into the game in the second period, tying the game at 5.

SIU then added another goal in the third to take the lead and and apparent control of the game. Lesnau answered back with a goal of his own, while Jakubik scored an empty net goal to secure the win.

Jakubik finished the game with three goals and one assist, while Lesnau had one goal and three assists.

CMU won both games and is now going to San Jose, Calif., later this month for a chance to win the American Club Hockey Association National Championship.

“We started the year off a little shaky but we came together and everyone did their roles,” Lesnau said. “It’s almost unreal. It took five years to get here, but I couldn’t ask for a better team to go with.”

Head coach Mike Willett also credits great goaltending from freshman Matt Darr for winning the two games in Chicago. Willett’s first year as head coach has been nothing but successful as CMU prepares to make the trip out west.

“He has been a great coach and is committed to his job and that is what this team needs,” Lesnau said. “He knows the game well, everyone respects him and I wouldn’t want any other coach to lead us at nationals.”

No one on the team has ever been to nationals before, but CMU looks to combat the inexperience with hard work at practice and keeping in shape during the time off on spring break.

CMU will have to be on top of their game to go to nationals and be competitive.

“We got to play consistently well in every game and play with no mistakes,” Willett said. “It’s going to be a higher level of competition and a good challenge for this team.”

Nationals begins March 15th with a total of 16 teams playing for the championship. CMU will be placed in a four-team pool, with the leader of the round robbin-style pool will be placed in the semifinals.

“If someone would have told me this would have happened in August when we picked the team, I would have called you crazy,” said junior Nick Badder. “We bought into what the coach said and now we are California bound. Our work isn’t done though, (it’s) time to work even harder and win nationals.”

This weekend, the seventh ranked Chippewas are travel to Chicago, Ill., to play for their chance to go to nationals. The team opens up against Illinois State.

This week during practice CMU has continued to work on team defense.

“We are repeating what we’ve been working on and trying to build up confidence,” Head Coach Mike Willett said. “We have also been working on winning close games and been aggressive through all 60 minutes.” In the locker room, players seem to be looking only at Saturdays game verse sixth ranked Illinois State University and not at the possibility of going to nationals.

“I really feel like have a great chance,” said senior Mike Lesnau. “We look forward to showing (CMU) that we are for real.”

During the regular season, CMU played ISU once and defeated them at home by a score of 6-5.

“We are a completely different team since the last time we played them,” Willett said. “The team has tightened down every aspect of our game and they are going to see a different style from a different team. We are better now and if we can play our game we are going to win by two, three, maybe even four goals.”

Senior captain Jordan Jakubik has been on the past three teams that went to regionals and is one of the most experienced players on the team.

“This team has one of the best chances CMU has had to get to nationals and we have already beaten the top teams,” Jakubik said. “We have a little more depth this year but need our goaltending and team defense to do well which is what hurt us in the past.”

If CMU can defeat Illinois State on Saturday, they will play another game Sunday. If it wins both games, it will earn a trip to San Jose, Calif., for nationals beginning March 1⁵. If they lose Saturday, then CMU’s hockey season is over and will leave players wondering what could have been.

The team will start freshman goalie Matt Darr with the impressive record of 8-2. Being the first season with coach Willett behind the bench, going to nationals was not a surprise, rather an expectation for him this season.

“The team should be going to regionals and are much better as a team,” Willett said. “ The team cannot be complacent with just getting to regionals, the true goal is to get to go  to nationals.”