By Aileyahu Shanes

Follow on Twitter @a_shanes10

This season just keeps on getting better and better for the Florida Gators. This Wednesday, the CHF released their national and regional rankings for the league’s collegiate teams. Rankings are done by MYHockeyRankings.com. There are two main criteria in the ranking system: average goal differential and strength of schedule.

Nationally, the Gators ranked ninth out of all CHF affiliated teams. These teams come from every CHF conference in every region. The regions include the Mid-Atlantic, East, North, and Southeast. The Gators 5-2 record gave them a 96.94 rating from the ranking system, which allowed them to secure the number nine spot.

The national rankings start at number one with Binghamton University. They have a 6-1-0 record and received a 99.01 rating. At second came Farmingdale State College. They are also 6-1-0 but came just shy of the first-place finishers with a 99.00 rating. Babson College came in third, Quinnipiac University placed fourth, Fairfield University placed fifth, University of Delaware came in sixth, University of Tampa came in seventh and the University of Georgia secured the eighth spot. Just under the Gators, at tenth place, is FAU, which UF split a back-to-back with just two weeks ago.

In addition to their number nine raking nationally, the Gators also ranked third in the CHF’s Southeast region. This region includes three conferences: the Atlantic Coast Collegiate Hockey League (ACCHL), the Southern Collegiate Hockey Conference (SCHC), and the SECHC. Just ahead of Florida are the University of Tampa and the University of Georgia, which ranked first and second respectively. FAU ranked fourth, Auburn University ranked fifth, ERAU ranked sixth, the University of Mississippi ranked seventh, the University of Tennessee ranked eighth, USF ranked ninth and Georgia Institute of Technology came in tenth.            

This CHF ranking just comes to show how far the Gators have come and how respected of a team they are. It’s only uphill from here, but this team is on the right path to success.