The Ice Lions have played only twice since the team was ranked No. 7 by the ACHA rankings committee. Apparently, the voters saw a lot in those two games.

The Penn State ACHA Division II Ice Lions jumped two spots to No. 5 in the Northeast Region in the latest rankings.

The Ice Lions split a weekend series with No. 2 Siena College earlier this month. Coach Mike Brinton said the win over Siena went a long way in deciding the rank.

"This is where I thought we would be, either fourth or fifth," Brinton said. "That win spoke volumes to a lot of voters who were on the fence with us because we now have beaten a quality team and proved our worth."

Brinton feels that the new rank solidifies Penn State as a legitimate threat in the Northeast Region. He described the team's early losses as flukes, and said that the league now knows that Penn State is "the real deal."

The team will look at the new rank as a stepping-stone for what looks to be a challenging remainder of the season. Brinton wants to see the same hard-nosed play that he saw against Siena carry over to the remaining games.

The Ice Lions' first three games after the break are against ranked opponents, including a matchup with No. 1 William Paterson University. These games carry an added importance because the team will not play another ranked opponent the rest of the season.

Brinton said a slow start could push the Ice Lions out of the 10th and final playoff spot. He said the team needs to win two of those first three games, and not lose another game the rest of the way. The team does not have the strength of schedule to make up for a bad loss.

Brinton feels the season will come down to how hard the team is willing to work in practice and games.

"The boys need to remember that they earned that victory against Siena with sweat and hustle, and they have to play that hard every game to win," Brinton said. "If they go back to playing 75 percent, we will start losing to unranked teams again because we are not good enough to not hustle."