Just two years ago, Dominick Dawes was a successful men's ice hockey coach at Neumann University. During his seven seasons at the Aston, Pa., school, Dawes guided Neumann to a 107-62-25 record and the 2008-09 NCAA Division III national championship. But the native of Utica, N.Y., saw an opportunity, and a challenge, with the new men's program at Stevenson University.
"The school is extremely invested in helping us to achieve what we have so far," Dawes said. "The women's program had already established a culture of hockey at Stevenson, so our guys had a model to follow. I was able to tell [the recruits] that there was nobody in front of them and they would get a chance to play."
Dawes was named the program's first coach in August 2015. Just 18 months later, the Mustangs have built a competitive program that has already posted a victory against a top 10 team. Stevenson scored its signature triumph Nov. 26, 2016, when the Mustangs defeated Buffalo State, 4-3.
