University of Denver hockey coach David Carle was named our Alaska Athlete of the Week after guiding the No. 3-ranked Pioneers to their second NCAA championship in the last three years with Saturday’s 2-0 victory over No. 1-ranked Boston College in St. Paul, Minn.
The Pioneers permitted just three goals in four NCAA tournament games.
In the regionals, they beat UMass 2-1 in double overtime and Cornell 2-1. They opened Frozen Four play with Thursday’s 2-1 overtime defeat of Boston University.
Carle also coached Denver to the 2022 championship and was an assistant coach on Denver’s title team in 2017.
Denver, which finished the season with 32 wins, 9 ties and 3 losses, owns a record 10 NCAA titles.
Carle, who also guided Team USA to the World Junior Championship in January, is assisted by former UAF stars and head coaches Dallas Ferguson and Tavis MacMillan.
Also receiving votes:
- Brady Borough – The former South High track standout set a Fort Lewis College school record in the 800m, at the Bryan Clay Invite clocking a time of 1:52.77 for the Skyhawks.
- Joshua Caleb – The UAA sprinter was unstoppable at the Pacific Coast and Beach Invitationals. The freshman phenom form Nigeria added two more program records, in 100-meter dash and reset the 4×100 relay record with his teammates.
- Andrew Kurka – The Palmer Paralympian ended the season on a winning note this week when he captured the giant slalom title at the North American para-alpine championships in dominating fashion in Winter Park, Colorado.
- Ruby Lindquist – The Moose Pass runner stormed to three victories in two sports over seven days. The North Face athlete won the Mammoth XC ski marathon (2:22:55), the Lake Sonoma Half Marathon (1:45:50), and the Billy Duotton Uphill ski race (39:22).
- JT Thor – The Charlotte Hornets basketball player from Anchorage had a breakthrough performance with a 20-point, 9-rebound, 4-assist, 3-block effort that sparked a 120-110 victory at Cleveland in the final game of the season. Earlier in the week he became the 5th Alaskan to surpass 500 career NBA points.
The Alaska Athlete of the Week is selected by a panel each Monday
Have a candidate in mind? Email us your nomination: info@alaskasportshall.org.