Ikkala a candidate for Lowes Senior CLASS Award

by Ryan Fay

Senior forward Cole Ikkala is one of 20 candidates for the Lowes Senior CLASS Award, it was announced Thursday.

Ikkala

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete has to be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.

Ikkala has participated in several community-based endeavors such as the Team Impact project, which assists children with life threatening illness. Other commitments have included serving Thanksgiving dinner at the YMCA, buying Christmas gifts for a needy family, organizing a book drive and helping beautify local neighborhoods through litter pickup.

In the classroom, Ikkala holds a 3.8 GPA in Managerial Economics. He is a recipient of the Charles N. Morrison Award, an endowed scholarship at Union that recognizes extracurricular activities and demonstration of academic interest and achievement.

Ikkala, an assistant captain this season, is known for his character. “He holds everyone accountable and is a hard worker,” team captain Mat Bodie said in a release. “A lot of the guys look up to Cole on and off the ice.”

On the ice, Ikkala has been a key role player during Union's recent run, which has included three straight NCAA Tournament appearances and back-to-back ECAC Hockey Tournament championships.

“Cole sets the tone with his work ethic, the team falls in line with what he does,” assistant coach Jason Tapp said in a release. “He is respected by his teammates and represents what we look for in a student-athlete.”

The 20 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2014 NCAA Men’s Frozen Final Four in April in Philadelphia.

The other candidates are Mac Bennett (Michigan), Jack Berger (Princeton), Sam Brittain (Denver), Greg Carey (St. Lawrence), Scott Czarnowczan (Ferris State), Nic Dowd (St. Cloud State), Kyle Gibbons (Canisius), Kevin Goumas (New Hampshire), Jordan Heywood (Merrimack), Andy Iles (Cornell), Stephen Johns (Notre Dame), Nick Jones (Mercyhurst), Dennis Robertson (Brown), Kevin Ryan (Niagara), Steven Shamanski (Providence), Dillon Simpson (North Dakota), Ryan Walters (Nebraska-Omaha) and Matt Zarbo (Clarkson).

Follow @UnionHockeyBlog