For the first time since the 2001-02 season, Cyclone Hockey has earned the conference champion title.

Last weekend, the No. 6 Cyclones (29-8-2) swept through the ultra-competitive Central States Collegiate Hockey League Tournament in Athens, Ohio, to win their 12th tournament championship in Cyclone Hockey history.

“You can’t really describe how great something like this feels,” said senior goalie Trent Baker.

“The things we did as a team this weekend were amazing, and you have to give credit to every single one of our players for doing their jobs well.”

Baker set the tone again for the Cyclones during the tournament, as he stopped 90 of his opponents 98 shots in three weekend games.

“Trent is playing as well as I’ve seen him play in the last four years,” said coach Al Murdoch. “Goaltenders tend to get beat up a lot through the years, but despite his aches and pains he stays focused and plays with a lot of heart night in and night out.”

Baker, who was named the CSCHL Tournament MVP, also accomplished a rare hockey feat, when he scored an empty net goal against a 6-on-4 Kent State power play Friday.

Baker also added an assist on a Pete Majkozak goal in the same game, earning Cyclone Hockey’s offensive and defensive player of the week honors.

The Cyclones scored first in every game of the weekend, including the championship game against No. 2 seed Illinois, when Majkozak scored 31 seconds into the game, and again four minutes later.

Illinois’ first-team All-League goalie Mike DeGeorge, who gave up just two goals against the Cyclones in their regular season series, was pulled after being scored on three times in the first 15 minutes of the championship game.

“Getting those early goals really helps against powerhouses like Ohio and Illinois,” Baker said.

“They like to intimidate you and get out ahead in the first ten minutes of the game, but we hit a lot harder than them, and played with a lot of drive and determination early on.”

The Cyclones took a 5-3 lead midway through the second period, and both teams were held scoreless for the last 30 minutes of the game to secure the conference title.

Saturday night’s semifinal game matched the Cyclones against Ohio, the host and No. 1 seed in the tournament. The Cyclones pulled out a dramatic 4-3 overtime victory when junior Jayson Peterson lit the lamp 13 minutes into overtime for an upset victory in front of the “Gang Green,” Ohio’s chaotic, emerald-clad crowd.

“Their fans can be pretty ruthless at times,” Murdoch said. “But thankfully we were able to keep them pretty quiet for most of the game.”

All the Cyclones’ regulation goals against Ohio were scored by freshmen, who accounted for 9 of the Cyclones’ 17 goals in the tournament.

Friday night’s tournament opener saw the Cyclones dominate the No. 5 seed Kent State for the third straight game, beating the Golden Flashes by at least six goals in every contest.

The line of Allen Raushel, Brian Spring and Mike Murtaugh accounted for six of the goals in the 8-2 victory, including Raushel’s hat trick, which was accomplished less than halfway into the game. The Cyclones now stand nine days away from the American Collegiate Hockey Association National Tournament in Youngstown, Ohio, and will play their final home series of the year against Division 2 University of Minnesota this weekend at the Ames/ISU Ice Arena.