Western Michigan and St. Cloud State on Thursday accepted invitations to join the University of Denver, Colorado College and four other schools in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.
They are the seventh and eighth schools to join the NCAA Division I league that starts play in 2013-14.
For the next two years, St. Cloud State will play in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Michigan in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. The other founding members of the NCHC are Miami (Ohio), Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Omaha and North Dakota.
The league was created in response to the Big Ten’s fledgling hockey league taking Minnesota and Wisconsin from the WCHA.
Root Sports announces DU telecasts.
Root Sports announced it will broadcast seven regular-season DU hockey games, seven men’s basketball games and one women’s basketball game this season. It’s the 11th consecutive year, and 18th overall, the network has been the official television partner of the Pioneers.
Root’s hockey coverage begins Nov. 4 when the Pioneers host defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth at 7:30 p.m. In-state rival Colorado College vs. DU is also a featured game, on Feb. 3 at 7:30 p.m.
Pioneer basketball tips off on the network on Nov. 11 with the DU men hosting Portland State at 7:30 p.m. The men’s schedule includes five nonconference games and two Sun Belt Conference games later in the season. The women’s squad faces Oregon on Dec. 11 at 1:30 p.m.
Colorado State volleyball beats Air Force.
Megan Plourde led the offense with 11 kills, and Izzy Gaulia sparked the defense with 19 digs as the Colorado State volleyball team, ranked No. 20, swept Air Force 25-19, 25-14, 25-21 in Fort Collins. Cami Richan led the Falcons with 13 kills and four digs.
• Reese Plante had 18 kills, and Camille Coffman added 15 and seven blocks, but the Wyoming volleyball team lost to Boise State 3-2 (25-20, 25-23, 18-25, 23-25, 15-12) in Laramie.
Mammoth selects top forward in draft.
The Colorado Mammoth selected forward Adam Jones third overall in the National Lacrosse League entry draft Wednesday night.
Jones, 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, is an Owen Sound, Ontario, native who played at Canisius College. He was named tournament MVP at the 2008 ILF U-19 Men’s Lacrosse World Championships for Team Canada.
The Mammoth also had the eighth overall pick in the first round and picked defenseman Dan Coates, a college teammate of Jones’, who was a first-team all-conference performer at Canisius.
With the 14th overall pick, Colorado chose attacker Jamie Lincoln, who played two seasons at the University of Denver before transferring to Hofstra.
