The Grand Canyon University Lopes roller hockey team hoists its championship banner Friday at Peoria Sportsplex ahead of a 7-6 overtime win against Arizona Impact. (Photo by Brady Hanson/Cronkite News)
PEORIA – Dubbed the “Miracle on Tile,” Grand Canyon University’s miraculous run last season to a National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCRHA) National Championship was forever lifted to the rafters of Peoria Sportsplex in the form of their first championship banner last weekend.
Despite the game starting at 10:30 p.m., the stands were filled with GCU students and parents eager to watch the ceremonies unfold.
“It was super cool to see the banner raised. I mean we fought really hard for it,” said Nicholas Ettelbrick, a forward and defenseman on last year’s Lopes team. “We had only heard about it, this time we actually got to see it raised in front of us and celebrate it. It felt real and it was just good to remember the moment. It gave me chills to see it go up.”
Not only did the team receive a banner, but each player was given a championship ring, commemorating GCU’s historic season.
The team’s rings were crafted by Signature Rings, a company based out of Lincoln, Nebraska that has created championship rings for many prestigious high school teams and collegiate programs, including the University of Washington and the University of Michigan. Aydin Schwetz, the team’s captain and director of operations, played a big role in developing the ring design.
Schwetz previously won a roller hockey national championship with Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, Missouri. After being disappointed with how the Lions’ program was run, Schwetz came to GCU and started the Lopes’ program from the ground floor. Naturally, he wanted to make sure his new team’s championship ring was much different from his one at Lindenwood.
“I wanted to make sure that every aspect of the ring was the exact opposite of the first one we got,” Schwetz said. “This ring was three sizes larger. Instead of being all white and gold, we made it all black with a purple accent. I made sure to add twice as many details as they had on theirs.”
The ring is full of details that are significant to the team’s championship season. In addition to featuring each player’s last name and jersey number on one side of each ring, the other side of the ring features the phrase “Miracle on Tile,” with the NCRHA championship trophy featured alongside ‘GCU 2- LU 1 3OT’, representing GCU’s 2-1 victory over Lindenwood in triple overtime of the NCRHA Division I Championship in April in Auburn, Maine.
Another custom detail is especially important to the team, one that Schwetz admits is his personal favorite.
“My favorite part about the ring is the Bible verse that’s on it. Which is 1 Samuel 17:50, which is the line that states when David triumphs over Goliath and puts his foot on his chest in triumph,” he said. “That was really kind of exactly what happened in our championship game and during our season. We were going up against our metaphorical Goliath and triumphing over him in the end. To have that on there, being a Christian university really meant a lot to us.”
The excitement from receiving the rings and raising the championship banner Friday preceded GCU’s game against the Arizona Impact.
GCU and Arizona Impact take a faceoff to the left of Lopes goalie Ryan Meltzer, who came up big late in the game to help secure a 7-6 overtime victory (Photo by Brady Hanson/Cronkite News)
In the first of three 12-minute periods, GCU jumped out to an early 2-0 lead. However, in the second period, the Impact shifted the game back in their favor behind three consecutive goals. Later in the period, the Lopes tied the score at 3, but the Impact went ahead by two goals before GCU scored twice to tie the game with the last one coming in the final minute with an empty net.
In the three-minute, three-on-three overtime period, it only took Schwetz one minute, two seconds to find the back of the net and send the crowd home happy with a 7-6 victory.
Ryan Meltzer, who started in net for the Lopes and recorded the victory, said that while the win was exciting, the players’ eyes are still set on a higher bar: winning that second championship ring.
“When I first saw the ring, my thoughts were ‘I want another one. Actually, I want two more. One for the AA team and one for the D1 team,’ Meltzer said. “It just represents the memories we made last year and all the hard work we put into this program, it all comes summed up in that ring that we get to wear on our fingers.
“To win again, we need to work hard. I’ve said it time and time again. If our team from the beginning of last year played our team from the end of last year, the team from the end would’ve killed them. That’s exactly what needs to happen this year. We need to improve every day and every practice and work hard on the rink, in the gym, and by ourselves individually.”
The Lopes also hosted Arizona State and the University of Arizona for an NCRHA tournament, earning a four-game sweep. GCU defeated ASU 7-5 and 4-3 (OT), and Arizona 7-4 and 4-3 (OT).
After the holiday break, GCU resumes its pursuit of back-to-back national championships.
“Going into January and February of next semester, I think what’s really going to help us is finding our groove and finding a little more solidity,” Schwetz said. “Going into every game knowing who your linemate is, knowing where your place is, and just being able to focus on the game and your performance.”
