Feb 27, 2019 3 min read

Vulcans move to No. 2 in region

The California University of Pennsylvania women’s basketball team jumped two spots to second in the latest NCAA Division II Atlantic regional rankings, which were released Wednesday afternoon.

The NCAA regional rankings determine the participants for the NCAA Tournament. The Atlantic Region consists of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), Mountain East Conference (MEC) and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA). All three conference tournament champions receive an automatic bid with the top-five remaining teams in the final regional rankings receiving at-large bids.

The 10 teams in rankings remain the same from last week’s initial rankings, however, several teams changed positions. Virginia Union, which won the regional title in both 2016 and 2017, claimed the top spot in the regional rankings with a 23-2 overall NCAA Division II record and a 20-2 mark against in-region opponents. Cal U (21-3) jumped two spots to second and Glenville State (23-2) remained at third. IUP (20-2) fell three spots to fourth, while Bowie State (21-4, 19-4) continued to round out the top five in the regional rankings.

Edinboro (18-6) remained at sixth, while Charleston (W.Va.) (20-5) and Concord (21-5) each climbed one position to seventh and eighth, respectively. West Liberty (18-8, 18-7) fell two spots to ninth and Bloomsburg (16-9) continued to round out the top 10 in the regional rankings.

The Vulcans have played seven games against the region’s top-10 teams this season, tallying a 5-2 mark in those contests. Cal U, which is ranked No. 17 in the country, has already clinched a home game in the PSAC Tournament with two games remaining in the regular season.

The regional rankings will be released again next Wednesday before the final rankings and tournament selections are announced on March 10.

Pens recall player

The Pittsburgh Penguins have recalled forward Teddy Blueger on an emergency basis from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League, it was announced today by executive vice president and general manager Jim Rutherford.

Blueger, 24, has skated in nine NHL games with Pittsburgh this season, scoring three times and recording four points. He notched his first NHL goal on Feb. 1 against Anders Nilsson and the Ottawa Senators.

The 6-foot, 195-pound center is Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s leading goal scorer with 21 goals. His 39 points in 45 games this season rank second on the team behind Ethan Prow’s 40 points.

Blueger is in his third full season with WBS. He has accumulated 49 goals, 66 assists, 115 points and a plus-58 in 179 career games with WBS.

The Riga, Latvia native was drafted by Pittsburgh in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft.