AFA hockey picked No. 1 in league

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – For the second year in a row, Air Force was picked as the preseason favorite to win the regular-season title in the 10-member Atlantic Hockey Association. The Falcons garnered eight out of 10 first-place votes.

Mercyhurst was second with two first-place votes followed by the Rochester Institute of Technology, Holy Cross, Canisius, Army, Bentley, Sacred Heart, UConn and American International.

“We have a tremendous amount of respect for our league,” Falcons coach Frank Serratore said. “We take this (No. 1 ranking) as a compliment while realizing we have a tough task ahead of us. We were ranked No. 1 last year and it worked out well. We’re comfortable with it. You can take off that jinx factor.”

In March, Air Force shared the regular-season title with RIT, won the postseason tournament for the third year in a row and later defeated Michigan in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Falcons lost to Vermont in the regional final.

In other news, Commissioner Robert M. DeGregorio Jr.announced that the league’s postseason tournament will continue in Rochester in 2011. The one-year extension was finalized Tuesday morning before a media conference call announcing the poll.

This year’s tournament is March 19-20 at Blue Cross Arena. Also, as expected, provisional members Robert Morris and Niagara will join the league for the start of the 2010-11 season, increasing the AHA’s ranks to 12.