Lindenwood University Athletics

National Championships (2002,2003,2004,2005,2006,2007,2008, 2010, 2013, 2014)

2001-2002

In the program's third year overall the Lindenwood roller hockey team began one of the best and longest national title runs in the country. During the regular season of 2001-2002 the Lions were 25-2. The Lions would face up against the Michigan State Spartans in the national championship game and would finish on top by the score of 6-4. The championship was the first for the program and laid the ground work for one of the most successful programs in the country.

2002-2003

For the first time in program history the Lindenwood Lions roller hockey team finished a season undefeated. The Lions were a perfect 25-0 but it was not the first time the Lions won a national championship. The victory in the national championship against Michigan State was the programs second straight national title.

2003-2004

In the program's fifth year the Lions won their third straight and third overall national championship in 2003-2004. The Lions finished their second straight season with a perfect record, 28-0 and were dominant in the regular season and in the postseason. In the national championship game, against the Penn State Nittany Lions, the Lindenwood Lions would crush Penn State by the score of 10-4.

2004-2005



For the fourth time in as many years the Lindenwood roller hockey team ended the season on top of the roller hockey world. The Lions won their fourth straight national championship in 2004-2005 when they beat Central Florida University 5-2. The regular season was a dominant one for the Lions as they compiled a record of 27-1.

2005-2006



Another year meant another title for the Lindenwood roller hockey team, 2005-2006 was the teams fifth straight national championship. The Lions were a perfect 39-0 during the regular season and won the Great Plains Conference championship. During the national tournament the Lions averaged a total of nine goals a game and were dominant. In the national championship game the Lions faced off against the Michigan State Spartans and they would win its fifth consecutive national championship. Junior Greg Thompson was named the tournament MVP for the third straight year.

2006-2007



The Lindenwood roller hockey dynasty continued in 2007 as the team won the NCRHA Division I National Championship with a 12-2 win over Rhode Island. The national title was the sixth-straight for the Lions program, and the team had now won 90 straight contests, a streak that goes back to 2004. Lindenwood, which ended the year with a perfect 30-0 mark, dominated the Division I field at the 2006-07 championships. The Lions won their seven games by an average of 8.1 goals a game and allowed just a total of eight goals during the tournament. The Lions ended any suspense in the title game by jumping out to a 6-0 lead after one period. Lindenwood outshot Rhode Island by a 21-2 margin in that 12-minute span. Brandon Marchand scored just seven seconds into the game after receiving a pass from Travis Fudge. Kyle Gouge and Fudge scored the next two goals for Lindenwood.

2007-2008



For the seventh straight year the Lindenwood roller hockey team captured the NCRHA Division I National Championship. The Lions won the championship game with a 6-3 victory over the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Lindenwood advanced to the title match with an 11-4 victory over UC-Irvine in the semifinals. The Lions trailed for the only time during the national championship event when UC-Irvine scored the first goal of the game. Lindenwood answered two minutes later and then added another goal late in the period for a 2-1 lead after one. The 2008 tournament championship was a team effort. Both goalies recorded shutouts during the team's seven games and combined, allowed just nine goals. Twelve of the other 13 players on the national roster scored goals and all 13 had assists. Brandon Barnette led the team with 11 goals throughout the tournament, Bruce had a team-high 10 assists and Bruce and Gouge led the team with 16 points apiece. Barnette and McGuinness finished with 14 points apiece, Fudge and Hill each had 13 points and Nick Syrigos was in double-figures with 10 points. Dustin Brown won six games in goal, allowing nine goals, including none during two pool play games and just two during the first two rounds of the bracket tournament. Lindenwood concludes its season with a 26-1 overall record. Over the program's last 117 games, the Lions have won 116, with the one loss coming earlier in 2007 to the University of Missouri-St. Louis squad they beat in the championship match.

2009-2010

The 2009-10 season began with extra motivation for the Lindenwood Lion roller hockey team. The end of the 2008-09 season ended with the Lions in second place, which hadn’t happened in seven years. So the goal for this edition of the Lindenwood Lions was to get back to the top of the college roller hockey world. The season started with the Lions winning their first 23 games of the season. The Lions average margin of victory in the span was over six goals a contest. As the regular season came to a close the Lions would dominate the Great Plains Regional Tournament with two wins over the defending national championship, Missouri-St. Louis, and a win over the University of Missouri. After the regional championship the Lions would move onto the NCRHA National Tournament in San Diego, California. The tournament did not start the way the team expected. The Lions would lose the opening game to Buffalo by the score of, 7-2. After bouncing back with a win over Michigan State, the Lions would tie their final game of pool play against Missouri-St. Louis. After pool play the Lions quickly regained their dominating form. First up was a 9-1 win over Rhode Island followed by a 6-2 win over Missouri-St. Louis. Finally, the Lions would match-up against the Arizona State Sun Devils in the finals. The Lions would jump out to an early 1-0 lead scoring just 13 second into the game. Lindenwood would take a 3-0 lead into the first intermission and would cruise from there, winning 5-1 to clinch another national title. The national championship was the eighth title in the past nine years for the roller hockey program.

2012-13



















After coming up empty in the previous two trips, the Lions brought the cup back to Lindenwood in 2013 with a 6-2 victory over Michigan State at the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCRHA) Division 1 Championship in Fort Myers, Fla.  The Lions went undefeated (18-0-2) in regular season play and easily captured the Great Plains Regional Championship with wins over Missouri State and Illinois to advance to the National Championship.  Lindenwood steamed through pool play, stopping Eastern Michigan 8-2 and the University of California-Santa Barbara 7-2, before enacting a bit of revenge against UNLV 8-0.  The Rebels were the team to upset the Lions in the quarterfinal round of the 2012 Championship.  The toughest test for the Lindenwood came in the first round of single elimination match play against Arizona State.  The Lions escaped with a narrow 6-5 win and then continued to run the table with victories over Long Beach State 9-3 and another win over UNLV 4-1 in the semifinals before taking down the Spartans in the title game.  It was the ninth national championship in the history of the Lindenwood roller hockey program.   

2014

























After capturing the national title in 2013, roller hockey edged Neumann University for a 2-1 win in the finals of the 2014 National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCRHA) Division I Championship at the IceWorks Arena in Aston, Pa.  Lindenwood won all three games in pool play to advance into single elimination bracket competition to become one of 24 teams still left fighting for the title.  The Lions defeated Hofstra 5-1, stopped Bethel 9-2, and then shutout Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo 5-0.  After a first round bye, Lindenwood skated into the semifinals with a tough 3-1 victory against Long Beach State, and then cruised past Northeastern 7-3.  While the championship game was a nail-biter, the semifinal game earlier in the day was not.  In a rematch against Hofstra, the Lions jumped out to a two goal lead after the first period, and then ran away from the Pride in a 10-1 win.  Lindenwood ended the 2013-14 season with a record of 34-1-0.  After winning their sixth straight Great Plains Collegiate Inline Hockey League title, they successfully defended their NCRHA D1 title from 2013, and won the 10th national championship in program history.