On February 4, 1921, a magical season began for Bryn Athyn Academy hockey. The 1921 team won every game they competed in, including wins over the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton University in exhibition contests. The season culminated with district and state championship wins.
The 1920-1921 Bryn Athyn Academy Hockey Team and newspaper headlines from the season (Photo from the Academy of the New Church Archive).
Werner Schnarr captained the 1921 team. Schnarr was a Boys's School Senior. Later, in 1924 he became an "Original Eleven" Boston Bruin. He played on the first ever Bruins team, which was the first team in the U.S. in the National Hockey League. He is the only alumnus of the Boys' School and Bryn Athyn College to have played in the NHL.
Werner Schnarr as captain for the Bryn Athyn team in 1921 (left), and with the 1924-1925 Boston Bruins NHL team (right). (Photos from the Academy of the New Church Archives, Swedenborg Library, Bryn Athyn College, Pennsylvania, and the Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto, Ontario)
The hockey program surged again in the early 1960s when a group of Canadian students took the initiative to form a team. Hockey has been played at Bryn Athyn ever since. Coach Brian Schnarr inspired a generation of players, and hockey became a part of the institution's fabric. Schnarr was a visionary and helped establish the Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey League (later renamed Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey Conference -- DVCHC) in 1971-72. BAC ended up winning the inaugural league and continued its proud tradition in the conference during the 1970s and 1980s with seven top four finishes including two regular season championships and two runner-up finishes in playoffs.
The 1972 championship team was commemorated on December 12, 2014. Several members of the team participated in the ceremony at the Jungé Pavilion. Left to right: Dave Childs, Brian Keith, Ron McQueen, Phil Schnarr, Michael Posey, Brian Schnarr (Coach), Steven Hendricks, and Jay Lermitte.
In 1995, the program took another major step with the opening of the Jungé Pavilion rink on campus. The college team played the inaugural game at the Jungé Pavilion on December 3, 1995, against Rider University (NJ), which ended in a 2-2 tie.
In the 2010s, the program became one of the premiere Division III club programs in the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA). The Lions won four league championships, and were ranked #1 in the ACHA Atlantic region at the end of three consecutive seasons. A major milestone was qualifying for the ACHA D3 National Championship tournaments for three straight years, and reaching the Frozen Four twice.
The program's amazing success at the club level ushered in a new era of Division III hockey. The upstart Division III team made some noise and was trending to become a part of the regional conversation in the "D3" hockey world.
Hockey has been the longest running sport at Bryn Athyn College. The program has provided camaraderie, and developed life-long friendships. The local community united behind the team with dedicated and passionate support. Our record of 25 consecutive home wins at the Jungé Pavilion will take some beating. Campus life buzzed with excitement throughout the season and connected us all. Many fans traveled to the national finals or gathered on campus to watch the live stream en masse. Wonderful memories! That 1920-1921 Bryn Athyn Academy team served as a beacon of what our program could be and would become. One hundred years on and still going strong!
