Adrian names men's coach, will join MCHA

Adrian College made more news last week when it named Ron Fogarty (left) head coach of its first men's team and announced the Bulldogs will play in the MCHA.

"To say that we are thrilled to attract Ron Fogarty to this position is an understatement," said Adrian athletic director Mike Duffy. "We have been excited about the construction of our ice arena and building ice sport programs from the beginning. Attracting Ron Fogarty, with his experience of developing talent, creates an opportunity for our future student athletes to be coached by one of the best around.

"Other than the day that we dedicate the ice arena, I cannot imagine a bigger day for Adrian College men's ice hockey. We landed a head coach from a Division I university this morning, and have been accepted into one of the premier college hockey conferences this afternoon."

Fogarty, 34, is currently an assistant coach with Bowling Green, but will leave the Falcons immediately for his new position in southern Michigan.

"My coaching style will be up-tempo, which encompasses a positive and energetic team that is accountable and takes ownership," said Fogarty. "I envision a team that will have a relentless work ethic on and off the ice."

Prior to coaching at Bowling Green, Fogarty served as the top assistant coach at Clarkson University and helped lead the Golden Knights to a 17-15-6 record in 2001-02, and coached Erik Cole, a future Carolina Hurricaine, Randy Jones, a Philadelphia Flyers free agent signing, and Rob McFeeters, the 2001 ECAC Rookie of the Year. With BGSU, Fogarty worked with NHL draft picks Jonathan Matsumoto (Philadelphia), Jonathan Sigalet (Boston Bruins), Alex Foster (Toronto Maple Leafs), Jordan Sigalet (Boston) and Kevin Bieksa (Vancouver Canucks).

Adrian named Chandy Kaip its first women's coach two weeks ago.

As for the MCHA, that decision came the same day as Fogarty's hiring.

"This was a unanimous decision that was made by our members," MCHA commissioner Terry Brand said. "The addition of Adrian College to the MCHA is a big step forward and allows us to take greater control of our own destiny. Now that we have eight members - seven of which are NCAA DIII programs - we can start a process to apply to the NCAA for conference recognition and hopefully an automatic qualifying bid someday soon for postseason national tournament play."