Holy Cross to Face North Dakota in NCAA

March 22, 2004

Courtesy of Holy Cross Sports Information Department

Crusader Six Seed in the NCAA Tournament

Worcester, MA - The Atlantic Hockey champion Holy Cross Crusaders head to the NCAA Tournament. The Crusaders will face the top ranked Fighting Sioux of North Dakota Friday, March 26th in Colorado Springs, CO. The Crusaders defeated Sacred Heart Saturday night to claim the Atlantic Hockey tournament championship and the NCAA bid.

Andrew McKay (Bellefeuille, QUE) led the Crusaders in the victory with two goals while Tony Quesada (South Freeport, ME) notched 28 saves to pick up his second shutout of the Atlantic Hockey Tournament.

"We came together all season and things seemed to get better for us as the year went along," said Holy Cross head coach Paul Pearl. "We played hard, played good defense and scored on our power plays like we have all year and that was key to the win. It feels real good to be heading to the NCAA tournament, it is pretty exciting for us."

The first round NCAA game will mark the first ever meeting between the Crusaders and Sioux. Holy Cross finished the Atlantic Hockey tournament with a 22-9-4 overall record en route to clinching the first NCAA bid in the program's history. Number one ranked North Dakota finished the season with a 29-7-3 overall record.

The two teams face off in the West Regional Friday at 5:30 p.m. in Colorado Springs, CO.