The inaugural season of Atlantic Hockey America has come to an end, and the 2024-25 campaign was one to remember.

On the men's side, the Bentley Falcons earned their first Atlantic Hockey championship and appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
 
On the women's side, the Penn State Nittany Lions captured their third consecutive conference regular season and postseason titles. 

In this month's Atlantic Hockey America “Building Champions” feature story presented by JLG Architects, we are taking a look back at historic seasons from both Bentley and Penn State.
























BENTLEY'S HISTORIC RUN
The Bentley Falcons posted a record of 18-14-2 in the regular season, before collecting five more wins in the postseason. In total, the Falcons ended 2024-25 with a 23-15-2 record, which was good for a winning percentage of .600. Bentley posted a conference record of 16-9-1 during the regular season, finishing third in the AHA standings. 

Andy Jones' squad went on a historic run in the postseason, clinching Bentley's first-ever Atlantic Hockey postseason title and NCAA Tournament appearance. The Falcons went a perfect 5-0 in the AHA Postseason Tournament, with three wins coming on the road, and out-scored their opponents 20-5. Bentley won the AHA postseason title with a 6-3 win over Holy Cross on March 22. Nik Armstrong-Kingkade collected four points on two goals and two assists in the game. Forward Armstrong-Kingkade, A.J. Hodges, defenseman Nick Bochen, and goaltender Connor Hasley were named to the AHA All-Tournament Team.  HASLEY SHUTS THE DOOR
Falcon goaltender Connor Hasley put together a tremendous 2024-25 season between the pipes. Hasley led all of college hockey with eight shutouts during the regular season, with all eight coming in league play. The junior netminder posted a 1.98 goals-against average and .921 save percentage against AHA competition. Hasley tallied three more shutouts in the AHA Postseason Tournament, bringing his season total to an NCAA-leading 11. He now ranks second all-time in NCAA history for shutouts in a single season, trailing only Niagara's Greg Gardner, who recorded 12 shutouts in the 1999-2000 season. In the AHA postseason, Hasley posted a perfect 5-0 record with three shutouts, and made 114 saves on 119 shots, which was good for a .958 save percentage. For his efforts, Hasley was named as the Most Outstanding Player for the AHA Postseason Tournament. BENTLEY INDIVIDUAL AWARD HONORS
Three Falcons were named to the 2024-25 AHA All-Conference Teams. Ethan Leyh and Nick Bochen were named to the All-AHA First Team, while Connor Hasley was named to the All-AHA Second Team. Furthermore, Leyh was named a co-winner of the AHA Best Defensive Forward Award.

BENTLEY'S TOP SCORERS
Ethan Leyh, Gr., F: 42 points (17g, 25a)
Nick Bochen, Gr., D: 30 points (9g, 21a)
Nik Armstrong-Kingkade, Gr., F: 27 points (12g, 15a)  
PENN STATE'S HISTORIC SEASON
The Penn State Nittany Lions posted a record of 28-5-1 in the regular season, with their 28 wins setting a program record. In total, the Nittany Lions ended 2024-25 with a 31-6-1 record, which was good for a winning percentage of .829. The Nittany Lions won their first 17 games in AHA league play, and set a record with 19 league wins en route to a 19-1-0 record in AHA play. 

Jeff Kampersal's squad captured their third consecutive conference regular season title with a 4-3 win over Mercyhurst on Feb. 7. The Nittany Lions then earned Atlantic Hockey America's automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament by winning all three games in AHA postseason play, including a 4-1 win over Mercyhurst in the AHA Championship Game on March 8. Brianna Brooks potted two goals for PSU, and Maddy Christian scored a goal just 37 seconds into the game and later added an assist. Christian scored a goal in all three tournament games, earning her tournament Most Outstanding Player honors. Along with Christian, forward Tessa Janecke and defenseman Leah Stecker were also named to the AHA All-Tournament Team. JANECKE'S BIG NUMBERS
Tessa Janecke was among the highest-scoring skaters in the country, as she ranked eighth nationally with 53 points in 2024-25. The junior forward led Atlantic Hockey in multiple statistical categories, including goals (24), points (53), goals per game (0.63), points per game (1.39), shots (219), plus/minus (+35), and faceoff win percentage (.699). Janecke tallied 28 points on 13 goals and 15 assists in 20 league games, which gave her the AHA Scoring Championship for a second straight season. In addition to being named to the All-AHA First Team, the Orangeville, Ill. native was also named the Meghan Agosta Player of the Year and Vicki Bendus Forward of the Year. She became the first CHA/AHA skater to to earn back-to-back Player of the Year honors and conference scoring titles since Robert Morris' Brittany Howard took home both awards in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Nationally, Janecke was named a Top 10 Finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award, and earned Second Team CCM/AHCA All-America honors. DESA STANDS TALL IN NET
During the regular season, Penn State goaltender Katie DeSa led Atlantic Hockey and ranked sixth in the country with a 1.40 goals-against average. In conference play, the junior netminder led the AHA in save percentage (.947), goals-against average (1.13), and shutouts (7). DeSa ended the 2024-25 campaign with a 1.42 goals-against average, which ranked fourth nationally. Her 27 wins between the pipes set a Penn State single season record and ranked second in the country. 

PENN STATE INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS
The Nittany Lions had eight total players named to AHA All-Conference Teams in 2024-25. Tessa Janecke, Katelyn Roberts, Kendall Butze, and Katie DeSa were named to the All-AHA First Team, while Maddy Christian and Lyndie Lobdell were named to the All-AHA Second Team. In addition, Grace Outwater and Grace Tullock were named to the AHA All-Rookie Team. In addition to Janecke's individual award honors, Kendall Butze was named the Molly Byrne Best Defenseman for 2024-25, and Katie DeSa was named the Brianne McLaughlin Goaltender of the Year, as well as the AHA Goaltending Champion. Head coach Jeff Kampersal was named AHA Coach of the Year for the third straight season and fourth time in his career.

PENN STATE'S TOP SCORERS
Tessa Janecke, Jr., F: 53 points (24g, 29a)
Katelyn Roberts, Jr., F: 35 points (11g, 24a)
Maddy Christian, Jr., F: 33 points (21g, 12a)
 
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