The St. Norbert College Green Knight hockey team is doing its best skating at just the right time. 8-0-2 in their last 10, SNC routed UW-River Falls on Saturday for the Peter’s Cup title and an automatic bid to the National Tournament.

The top seed in the West Region (and a #3 national ranking), you’d think that SNC would have one of the easier roads to the Frozen Four. That is to say, SNC’s reward for generating top billing would be a first round bye. After all, five schools are granted automatic entry into the Quarterfinals. You’d think SNC would have to be one of them.

Think again.

Once again, the top seed in the West Region of the NCAA Division III Tournament will have to play its way into the Quarterfinals, and watch while 5 schools from out East – Middlebury, Plattsburgh St., Bowdoin, Oswego St., and Norwich – literally skate into the round of 8.

“There must be an explanation for this,” you might be thinking.

Yep – East Coast bias. It really is that simple. It’s the reason the tournament is annually held out East. It’s the reason that the schools from the West are annually screwed over.

Solid work again from your NCAA.

Go get em’ Knights.