MIAC Release
ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced the 2008-09 MIAC Men's Hockey Awards today, March 5, 2009. Bethel University placed five different individuals on the various all-conference teams, including
Kent Bostrom (Sr., Vadnais Heights, Minn.),
Aaron Damjanovich (Jr., Remer, Minn.),
Chris Fiala (Fr., Vadnais Heights, Minn.),
John Kovacs (Sr., White Bear Lake, Minn.) and
Brad Peterson (Sr., Bloomington, Minn.).
As part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative, the MIAC announced the third annual All-MIAC Sportsmanship team for men's hockey. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition. Bostrom was Bethel's representative on the team for the second season in a row.
Bostrom earned All-MIAC first team honors for the fourth consecutive season. Not only was he the leading scorer for the Royals this season, but also was fourth in the conference in overall points with 33. Kent finished the regular season with 11 goals and 22 assists - both were tops on the Royals squad this year. Bostrom earned MIAC Athlete of the Week honors twice during the season - once for his five-point performance against Hamline, the other for his seven point performance in the two games against St. Thomas. He finishes his career as the ninth highest scoring Royal in team history with 117 points.
Damjanovich kept Bethel in many close games this season. Thanks to his effort between the pipes, he received an All-MIAC Honorable Mention. Damjanovich has now received All-MIAC recognition in all three seasons he's been at Bethel. He finished the season with a .904 save percentage while allowing 3.45 goals per game. With 39 wins at Bethel, he is also just four wins shy of setting a new school record for career victories.
Fiala was third amongst MIAC freshman this year in scoring, which earned him an All-MIAC Honorable Mention. Fiala averaged 1.13 points per game this season and had a total of 26 points on 17 assists and nine goals, of which two were game winners. He was also second on the Royals in scoring, trailing only Bostrom. One of the highlights of the season for Fiala was his five-point performance in Bethel's 8-7 upset of then nationally ranked Hamline.
Defenseman Kovacs also earned an All-MIAC Honorable Mention this season as he helped patrol the blue line for the Royals. Kovacs finished the year with five goals and seven assists for 12 points. Kovacs amassed 37 points in his career on 11 goals and 26 assists. This is the first All-MIAC honor of his career.
Peterson finished the regular season with a bang, scoring five points on two goals and three assists against St. Thomas helping him surpass the 100-point mark in his career and landing him third on the Royals season scoring list. Peterson scored 10 goals this season and added 15 assists to give him 25 points. He closed out his career with 102 career points, which is good for 17th all time at Bethel. This is the fourth consecutive All-MIAC Honorable Mention for Peterson.
