Blue White Illustrated

October 2015

Penn State Sports Magazine

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ne game was all it took. Andrew Sturtz, a standout in the Central Canadian Hockey League the past two seasons, visited Penn State for a game at Pegula Ice Arena and knew he'd found a college. "The students all seem to have a great bond and really love getting the energy go- ing for all of their sports teams," said Sturtz, a 5-foot-8, 180-pound forward from Buffalo. "I look forward to the four years I get to spend in the Penn State community. I also look forward to playing some games in front of the best student section in college hock- ey." Sturtz is coming off two tremendous seasons with the Carleton Place Canadians of the Central Canadian Hockey League. In 2013-14, Sturtz led the CCHL in scoring with 104 points, scoring 51 times and pro- viding 53 assists during the regular season. In the playoffs, Sturtz added 10 goals and nine assists in 14 games, averaging 1.71 points per game in 72 contests. For his efforts, he was named CCHL MVP and CJHL Player of the Year. Last season, Sturtz had another im- pressive campaign, scoring 30 times and dishing 42 assists. In the playoffs, he im- proved by scoring nine times with 13 as- sists in 12 games (1.83 points per game). During his time with Carleton Place, he led the Canadians to a pair of Bogart Cups, Fred Page Cups and trips to the Royal Bank Cup. Coach Guy Gadowsky described the Buffalo native as "a leader both on the ice and in the community. "We expect Andrew to hit the ground running when he arrives on campus," Gad- owsky continued. "His tenacious, com- petitive nature combined with an ability to consistently create offense will make him a handful for opposing defensemen." Sturtz, who will turn 21 in September, will wear No. 16 this season. He becomes the eighth member of Penn State's in- coming class, joining Chase Berger of St. Louis, Kevin Kerr of Bensalem, Pa., Alec Marsh of Bridgewater, N.J., Matt Mendel- son of Pittsburgh, Chris Funkey of Orland Park, Ill., Derian Hamilton of Port McNeill, British Columbia, and Vince Pedrie of Rochester, Minn. The Nittany Lions enter their fourth NCAA Division I season with the Big Ten's leading returning scorer in David Goodwin, who had 15 goals and 19 assists in 2014- 15. Goodwin was followed by Eric Scheid, who tallied 14 goals and 15 assists. ■ Glen named Lions' captain Senior forward David Glen was select- ed by his teammates as captain for the 2015-16 season, with defensemen Luke Juha and David Thompson serving as al- ternates. "Our staff supports a hundred percent, the team's choice for captains," Penn State head coach Guy Gadowsky said. "All three exhibit a high level of work ethic and an extremely strong commit- ment to Penn State University and our hockey program." Glen is the only returning Nittany Lion who has worn a letter previously, having been an alternate the past two seasons. The 2013-14 Penn State male recipient of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, Glen is among the program's all-time leaders in goals (fourth, 23), games played (fourth, 86), points (fifth, 46) and assists (seventh, 23). The senior economics major is a two- time Academic All-Big Ten honoree (2013-14, 2014-15) and leads the Nittany Lions' all-time plus-minus chart with a plus-10 rating. Glen becomes the third captain in Penn State's varsity history, following Tommy Olczyk and Patrick Koudys. Glen received widespread acclaim in 2014 when he sat out several games to undergo a stem cell donation procedure to help the mother of a fellow Penn State student-athlete who was battling can- cer. Glen had taken part in a donation drive more than a year earlier and didn't expect to be selected given the 1-in-540 odds. But when he was found to be a match, he didn't hesitate. "It was the right thing to do," he said. Joining Glen and receiving their first letters are blueliners Juha and Thomp- son. Juha, an economics major, was a 2014-15 All-Big Ten honorable mention player last season in addition to being a two-time Academic All-Big Ten hon- oree (2013-14, 2014-15). He is the high- est-scoring defenseman in Penn State history with 36 points on seven goals and 29 assists. A finance major, Thompson came into his own last season as a leader on the ice and in the locker room, providing steady play with captain Koudys. Thompson had a goal and five assists in 31 games, including the winner against No. 14 Ver- mont at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. Off the ice, Thompson was a 2014-15 Big Ten Distinguished Scholar and earned the team's Top Student-Athlete award with graduated senior Max Gar- diner. Koudys signs with Indy Fuel Former Penn State captain Patrick Koudys has signed a contract with the High-scoring forward completes roster O MEN'S ICE HOCKEY STURTZ N O T E B O O K

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