"At the beginning we had a good core group of guys, but a national championship was an unrealistic goal," said junior and club president Ryan Gendron.

Everything fell into place at the right time for the team, which is in just its fourth year of existence at Grand Valley State University and third at the Division II level.

"To get this far in four years is just amazing," Gendron said. "It really says a lot about the guys that started the club. I've seen the program come from winning two games, to last year falling short at nationals. Then, this year coming out and really proving that we're a force to be reckoned with. As a team, we knew we were playing our best hockey that we've played the entire year - playing the best hockey a Grand Valley roller hockey team has ever played."

Riding the team's longest win streak of the season, GVSU captured the title with a 9-7 victory over in-state neighbor Central Michigan University.

"The chances of putting together a six-game win streak at the end of the season is surreal," Gendron said. "Everything worked out the way that you would want it to. A dream, basically."

The dream of winning a national championship became a reality for the club program that finished the season 21-6-2.

After seeing how they stacked up against arguably the best team in defending champion Neumann College, the Lakers knew they had a chance at winning the championship, Gendron said. The 6-5 loss in the opening round of pool play motivated the team for the rest of the tournament.

"Right after that, things started clicking," he said. "We used that to fuel the fire. From there it just built up with every single game."

However, the championship game in Feasterville, Pa. was no cakewalk. After building an 8-4 lead, the Lakers were just minutes away from the title. However, the Chippewas fought back scoring three quick goals to swing the momentum back in their favor.

Any doubts were relieved though when team captain Nick Boyle put the team on his shoulders by giving the team the ever-important, two-goal lead with just four minutes to play.

In his last game as a Laker, his three-goal, two-assist game could not have come at a better time.

"For anybody who (is playing in) their last game, you always want to try to leave your mark," Boyle said. "And being the captain and this being my senior year, having that opportunity to be in the championship game, you want to leave it all out there. There's no game that's going to mean more than this one. The fact that it was the championship game, there couldn't be a better stage for you to shine."

In roller hockey, strong goalie play is crucial for success more so than in ice hockey since there are no offside or icing rules, resulting in more shots on goal.

Gendron said freshman goaltender Keith Chapman, who stopped 23 shots on 30 attempts, made some crucial saves in the title game.

"As a freshman in a national championship setting, he really stepped behind the team and solidified the defense," Gendron said.

The goalie play was the difference between falling short of the title last year and winning it this year, Boyle said.

"Last year we had a goalie who wasn't the best and this year we have a goalie that could take us all the way," he said. "The goalie is key and aside from the team coming together at the end, (he) was the biggest part of our win."

With the top three scorers returning to the team next season, the Lakers have a great chance of repeating as champions, Gendron said, especially with raised expectations.

"It will now be a realistic goal heading into the season," he said.

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