Wittenberg to Sponsor Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey ACHA Teams
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – After sponsoring a student-run ice hockey club team for many years, Wittenberg University will take its involvement in the sport to another level. Thanks to donor support, Wittenberg will sponsor men’s and women’s ice hockey American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) teams starting in the 2026-27 school year.
Wittenberg’s club team, which has traditionally included players of all skill levels with oversight provided by the Office of Student Involvement, has been a member of the Collegiate Ice Hockey Association (CIHA) in recent years. The new men’s and women’s ice hockey teams at Wittenberg will have professional coaches operating out of the Department of Athletics, and the teams will compete in the ACHA, which encompasses approximately 450 teams from colleges and universities across the United States and Canada in five divisions – three for men and two for women – competing at a more formal level.
The program will be led by Tyler Prater, who was recently hired as head coach of both of the new Tiger ice hockey teams. He comes to Wittenberg after serving as the head coach of the ACHA Division 1 men’s team at Waldorf University in Forest City, Iowa, since 2022, where he guided the program from a ranking of 70th nationally to the top 25 last year. Prior to coaching at Waldorf, Prater served as the head coach of the ACHA Division 2 men’s team and an assistant coach for the ACHA Division 1 men’s team at Adrian for three years. The Division 1 team won the ACHA National Championship in 2022.
“We are tremendously excited about the start of our ice hockey program at Wittenberg, and we believe it has great potential,” said Vice President and Wittenberg Director of Athletics and Recreation Brian Agler ‘80. “We have hired an excellent head coach in Tyler Prater, who has been successful as a coach at one the best small college hockey programs in the country in Adrian College. He has recruiting contacts throughout the United States and Canada. Our hockey facility is a couple blocks from campus, so it aligns with the makings of a special program.”
Wittenberg’s ice hockey teams will practice and compete at the Chiller Springfield, an ice arena located near the city’s rejuvenated downtown. The Chiller Springfield, which opened in October 2013, is owned by the National Trail Parks and Recreation District (NTPRD) and managed by Columbus, Ohio-based Chiller, LLC, which is affiliated with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“I'm very excited for the opportunity to build this program, and I am grateful to Vice President Brian Agler and Athletics Business Manager Brad Beals for their support and determination to get this program started,” said Prater, who graduated from the University of Kentucky with a bachelor’s degree in Russian Language, Literature, and Culture in 2016. “I'm most thankful to Ron Szuch for his support in getting this program up and running. We had hockey in the past and it's exciting to be bringing it back on campus.
“The community support has been amazing. I've already had a lot of people reach out and a few students come by to introduce themselves. Wittenberg has great facilities and all the tools to make hockey a great program on campus. I am really looking forward to recruiting and building this program into a strong contender with a lot of opportunity for growth.”
A native of Charlotte, Michigan, Prater began his coaching career while still an undergraduate student at the University of Kentucky, spending three years coaching pee wee hockey for the Lexington Thoroughbreds. After graduation, Prater coached youth hockey for the Lansing Hockey Club and Meijer AAA in Lansing, Michigan, as well as the club team at Dewitt/St. John's High School.
Wittenberg Board of Directors’ member and former Tiger student-athlete Ron Szuch, class of 1987, said he sees men’s and women’s ice hockey as an exciting opportunity to attract new students to Wittenberg while also expanding upon the University’s athletics tradition.
“I believe that the hockey programs will be an instant boost to the advancement of men’s and women’s athletics at Wittenberg,” he said. “I believe that the hockey program at Wittenberg will grow at a very rapid rate and foster student engagement, which will enhance school pride and create new traditions in Wittenberg athletics. This sport also coincides with the targeted demographics of the majority of Wittenberg students.”
Written By: Ryan Maurer