Everybody has that bad dream when thankfully they wake up right before it gets any worse.

This is what happened to the ACHA Div. I Icers, who luckily woke up just in the nick of time.

After the No. 1 Icers split two games with No. 2 Delaware at the beginning of February, it appeared they had wrapped up the No. 1 seed for the national tournament.

However, two upset losses this past weekend, at the hands of No. 4 Ohio, left that in doubt.

The Icers managed to narrowly hold on to their ranking by a mere five points.

"Overall we had the second toughest schedule and won three out of four from Delaware," Icers head coach Joe Battista said. "We should have been No. 1."

Being No. 1 would give the Icers the advantage of playing in a bracket with No. 8 Kent State and No. 12 Drexel.

"There is a huge differences between (playing) 8-12 and 7-11," goalie Scott Graham said.

On paper these games appear to be major mismatches, but Drexel is one of two teams the Icers have not seen yet this year, leaving room for the possibility of an upset.

The only team to upset the Icers this season has been Ohio, and Ohio pulled it off twice. The Bobcats are paired in the toughest pool (D) of all with No. 5 Iowa State and No. 9 Michigan Dearborn.

If all goes according to plan, the Bobcats and Icers could meet each other in a Final Four matchup.

However, both teams must survive their early-round games, which could be a real challenge for Ohio.

The Bobcats split their season series with Michigan Dearborn (1-1-2) and tied the Cyclones in their only meeting.

While the top half of the bracket is loaded with firepower, the bottom cannot be taken for granted either.

Of the 14 first-place votes handed out in the final ranking, the Icers took home eight, while four went to No. 2 Delaware and the final two went to No. 3 Minot St., who could be the surprise of the tournament.

Battista admitted that a case could be made for seeding Minot No. 1.

They are the team not many have seen and which could give them a big advantage come tournament time.

However, in order to escape their bracket they must get by No. 6 Eastern Michigan and No. 10 Towson.

As the host, Towson could present added trouble for their opposition.

Rounding out the bottom bracket in pool B is second-seeded Delaware. The Blue Hens entered last season's tournament as the No. 9 seed and made it all the way to the finals.

They have continued their momentum this season, and proved it by becoming the only team to defeat the Icers at home.

Given the trouble they gave to the Icers this season, they will be a tough out for anybody.

That honor goes to No. 7 Illinois and No. 11 Arizona.

While this year's tournament features highly ranked Penn State, Delaware and Minot St, everybody knows all 12 teams are capable of winning it all.

"A lot of teams can win it (the tournament)," Battista said. "Anything is possible."

If there is one thing certain about this year's tournament, it is that nothing is for sure, and no team can take any of its games for granted.