FERRIS MAKES A RETURN APPEARANCE IN NATIONAL RANKINGS

Junior left wing Matt Verdone and the Ferris State Bulldogs are once again generating national attention.

Bulldogs Place 20th In Two National Polls This Week

The Ferris State University men's ice hockey team's recent success has proved enough to impress college hockey analysts throughout the country as the Bulldogs are once again listed in the top 20 national rankings this week (Jan. 2).

The Bulldogs, who made their first national poll appearance earlier this season (Nov. 20), are ranked 20th this week by Inside College Hockey.com (INCH) and are tied with Boston University for 20th place in the U.S. College Hockey Online/College Sports Television (CSTV) Networks Poll.

Ferris State, which currently is 9-6-5 overall and 4-4-4 in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) this season, is listed 20th by INCH for the second consecutive week while the Bulldogs are making their first appearance in the USCHO/CSTV Poll for the 2005-06 campaign and accumulated 58 points in the poll.

FSU, coached by Bob Daniels, is also among eight teams picking up votes in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll as the Bulldogs had a three-points total. The 11th annual poll is conducted on a weekly basis in conjunction with the American Hockey Coaches Association. The polls includes input from coaches and journalists representing each of the six NCAA Division I ice hockey conferences, as well as composite votes from officers of the American Hockey Coaches Association and USA Hockey Magazine, the official publication of USA Hockey.

The University of Wisconsin remains the nation's top-ranked team in all of three major college hockey polls.

Ferris recently finished third at the 14th annual Wells Fargo Denver Cup (Dec. 30-31) in Denver, Colo., as the Bulldogs skated to a 3-3 tie with nationally-ranked Boston College in the tourney's semifinal round (Dec. 30) before posting a 3-2 triumph over two-time defending national champion and host Denver in the third-place game (Dec. 31). Boston College is listed in all three polls this week, including fifth in the USCHO/CSTV poll. Denver's 16th-place ranking by INCH represents its highest in this week's voting.

The Bulldogs are idle this weekend (Jan. 6-7) before heading out on a three-game CCHA road swing which starts at Northern Michigan (Jan. 13-14) and concludes at Bowling Green State (Jan. 16). The BGSU contest is being replayed as a result of the previously scheduled Oct. 27th game being suspended due to improper ice conditions. Ferris returns home the following weekend (Jan. 20-21) for a two-game league series against Lake Superior State at FSU's Ewigleben Ice Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. Both outings will start at 7:05 p.m. (EST) and tickets for those contests are available by contacting the FSU Ice Arena Ticket Office at (231) 591-2888.