Health & Fitness
SPORTS
Rolling To Glory
Threesome led MSU roller hockey.
Steve Stein
Special to The Jewish News
R
ecent Michigan State University
graduate Eric Lubanski has a
degree in advertising from MSU
and a new job as an account executive at a
trucking firm in Skokie, Ill.
Not far behind those accomplishments
is the legacy Lubanski left in East Lansing
following four successful seasons with the
MSU roller hockey team. Besides starring
on the rink, he served as president and cap-
tain of the nationally ranked club team as a
junior and senior.
"Those roles were great learning experi-
ences',' Lubanski said."Besides handling the
club's finances, I learned how to commu-
nicate and work with people with different
personalities:'
Because university club teams aren't
funded by the school, money must be
raised to cover expenses. It's a constant
struggle. But the MSU roller hockey team
received some help this season because it
won the Midwest Collegiate Roller Hockey
League tournament.
The championship earned the Spartans
travel and hotel money (along with the No.
1 seed from the Midwest) for the National
Collegiate Roller Hockey Association
national tournament in Colorado Springs,
Colo. "It was the first time we won the
league championship in my four years on
the team': Lubanski said."That's what ifs all
about in club sports ... raising the trophy."
MSU, one of the highest scoring teams in
the country, defeated Eastern Michigan 8-3
in the league championship game, played at
Total Roller Hockey in Wixom. The Spartans
also captured the regular-season league title
with an 18-2 record, allowing just 50 goals.
After playing in the national champion-
ship game twice in three years — losing
both times to Lindenwood (Mo.) — and
MSU's Evan Pomish, Eric Lubanski and Mark Lipson
winning four straight games in this year's
tournament, the Spartans were upset by
Central Florida 5-4 in the quarterfinals.
Lindenwood won its sixth consecutive
national championship.
Lubanski had 27 goals and 27 assists
this season, tying for 11th place in national
scoring. The 21-year-old Walled Lake
Western High School grad was one of three
Jewish players on the MSU roster. The
others were West Bloomfield High School
grads Evan Pomish, 19, a sophomore, and
senior Mark Lipson, 22. All three played
roller hockey for Detroit in the JCC Maccabi
Games when they were younger.
"During the three years that Mark and I
were on the Detroit Maccabi team, we won
three gold medals and didn't lose a game,'
Lubanski said.
Lubanski praised Pomish's and Lipson's
contributions to the MSU team.
"Evan is an outstanding defenseman, one
of the best in the nation': Lubanski said.
"When he played well, the team played well.
He isn't the biggest guy in the world, but it
isn't a lot of fun to go into the corners with
him:'
Pomish scored two goals and was
named the game's No. 2 star in MSU's
national tournament loss to Central Florida.
Lubanski, who had two assists, was named
the No. 3 star. Pomish scored twice and
Lubanski and Lipson once each in the
league championship win over Eastern
Michigan.
❑
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