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Win, Schafer, Win HOCKEY COACH MIKE SCHAFER '86 SHOOTS FOR A NATIONAL TITLE

wHILE PLAYING HOCKEY AT Cornell,Mike Schafer '86 was a short, stocky guy from Durham, Ontario, who fought during games, baited opposing coaches, and once broke a stick over his head during the player introductions. The Lynah Faithful saluted him by chanting, "Kill, Schafer, kill." Today, as head coach of the men's team, Schafer is a clean-cut disciplinarian who could be the most revered person on campus. He's so popular that last summer many Cornellians were more worried about the rumors that Schafer might leave the Hill than the news that President Jeffrey Lehman '77 had resigned.

In the fall of 1995, Schafer took over a moribund program that had gone 25-51- 10 in its three previous seasons and quickly rejuvenated it. During his first season, the Big Red went 21-9-4, took the ECAC title, and qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time in five years. Now in his eleventh year, Schafer has become one of the most successful and sought-after hockey coaches in the country. In addition to routinely churning out NHL-quality players who almost always get their degrees, Schafer has compiled a 199-103-34 record while leading the Big Red to four ECAC championships, six Ivy League titles, and five NCAA appearances, including a trip to the Frozen Four in 2003 and a near-miss last year, when his team fell to Minnesota in overtime in the regional final. And he's determined to bring another national championship to Cornell, which last captured the NCAA crown in 1970.

One key to Schafer's success has been savvy recruiting, which is a huge challenge at Cornell. There just aren't many kids with Division 1 hockey talent, the ability to pay at least some of their own way (the Ivy League forbids athletic scholarships), and the brains to handle Cornell's academics. What's more, prospects from such hockey hotbeds as Boston,Michigan, and Minnesota rarely want to play for Cornell. "Last year we tried to get Mark Mitera, a kid from Michigan," says Schafer. "His dad [Kenny Mitera '85] played at Cornell, but that didn't matter.Mark barely listened to us, and he's at Michigan."

One way Schafer has compensated is by mining prospects in nontraditional hockey cities like Dallas, where he found David McKee, Cornell's All-American junior goalie. But he still finds most of his players in Canada, home to 19 of the 25 players on the current roster. Schafer prefers Canadian recruits because they rarely have preset collegiate allegiances, and he likes the blue-collar backgrounds, similar to his own, that he often finds there. (Schafer's father was a lumberjack, and Mike labored as a short-order cook and an ice plant worker during summers off from Cornell.)

Schafer's charges learn to love, or at least endure, two things that he eschewed as a player: discipline and fitness. During preseason this fall, Schafer divided his players into three teams and put them through grueling workouts in a "Survivor"- like competition. "Some kids don't like being pushed and hate me," he says. "But if a coach is well-liked by all his players, he's not doing his job."

Schafer has lots of rules: No jewelry.No long or bleached hair. Players can't enter his office wearing a backwards baseball cap. If a player misses a class, he must be in Schafer's office every day for two weeks from 8 a.m. until his first class of the day. "I want guys to bring attention to our program, not to themselves," says the coach.

This year's team could be Schafer's best. Ranked first in the ECAC and fourth nationally in preseason polls, the Big Red returns 14 lettermen from last year's squad. The leaders are McKee, who spurned NHL offers to spend at least one more year at Cornell, and senior forward and captain Matt Moulson, last season's scoring leader with 22 goals and 20 assists. There are seven talented freshmen, including forward Evan Barlow, who led his Canadian junior league squad to a championship. Barlow will compete to fill the void left by Shane Hynes '06, who left Cornell to sign a pro contract in August.

There will be a bigger void when Schafer decides to move on. Last summer, he was courted by other universities-- including ones that offer athletic scholarships-- but Cornell kept him with a lucrative six-year contract extension. "Cornell made it clear that they want me, but that could always change," says Schafer. "This is sports. I have aspirations of coaching in the professional ranks, but that's down the road. Right now, I'm committed to trying to win a national championship."

-- Rick Lipsey '89

RICK LIPSEY is a staff writer for Sports Illustrated and a member of the Cornell Alumni Magazine Committee.

Sports Shorts

BATMAN Brian Kaufman '08 spent the summer pulling double duty in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. During the day, he was an intern in the Department of Community Development, while his evenings were spent playing for the Pittsfield Dukes in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, a summer wood-bat league. An outfielder, Kaufman led the Dukes in hitting with a .301 average and was named to the NECBL South Division All-Star team.

WHY A DUCK? In addition to the five seniors who left the 2005 ECACHL champion men's hockey team, Cornell will need to replace forward Shane Hynes '06, who signed with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim over the summer. Hynes had been selected by Anaheim in the third round of the 2003 NHL draft. He was Cornell's second-leading scorer last season with 28 points on seven goals and 21 assists.

STAND-IN Doug Derraugh '91 will replace Melody Davidson behind the bench for the Cornell women's hockey team during the 2005–06 season. Davidson is taking a year's leave of absence to serve as head coach of the Canadian national women's team at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. Derraugh spent 13 years playing professionally in Europe after helping Cornell to an ECAC runner-up finish and an NCAA tournament appearance in his senior year. Last season, Derraugh was an assistant coach for the Ottawa University men's hockey team while also founding the Meteor Sports summer training and conditioning program.

EMMY WINNER As a back on the women's soccer team, Lindsay Rovegno '04 learned that those who work behind the scenes don't always receive the credit they deserve. But Rovegno was one of the unsung heroes honored when ESPN's "SportsCenter" received a Sports Emmy in May; she is an associate producer for the daily show.

ROOKIE HONOR Palguta '05 was the first winner of the Rochester Raging Rhinos Rookie of the Year award after helping the United Soccer League Division I team to a second- place regular-season finish. A defensive specialist, Palguta had one assist while playing in 23 games for the 15-7-6 Rhinos.

DEJA VU The U.S. women's hockey team has probably seen enough of Dana Antal '99 in the Four Nations Cup tournament. For the second straight year, Antal beat the Americans with a game-winning third-period goal to give her Canadian team its eighth Four Nations championship in ten years. Antal knocked a rebound out of the air and into the net with 8:21 left to give Canada a 2-1 victory. She scored two goals and had one assist in four games for the Canadian team, which is coached by Cornell women's hockey coach Melody Davidson.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETES After showing its athletic dominance by sweeping the indoor and outdoor Heptagonal championships, the women's track and field team has been recognized for its academic prowess as well. The Big Red was named an all-academic team by the United States Track Coaches Association after posting a team GPA of 3.15. Eight members of the Big Red-- Kate Boyles '05, Jessica Brown '05, Shonda Brown '05, Robyn Ellerbrock '07, Alison Koplar '05, Amber McGown '05, Alyssa Simon '05, and Morgan Uceny '07-- earned individual all-academic honors as well. The Intercollegiate Tennis Association similarly honored the women's tennis team as an all-academic team. Kara Maloy '06, Erika Takeuchi '05, and Melissa Tu '05 were named ITA Scholar Athletes.

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