R

yan Berke’s dream was 
to play hockey in an 
NCAA program. 
After four years of play-
ing junior hockey with stops 
in Georgia, New Jersey and 
Pennsylvania, that dream 
didn’t come true. But there 
was a silver lining in the dis-
appointment. 
And a national champion-
ship.
Berke played this season for 
the Indiana University club 
hockey team. For the first 
time in the storied program’s 
55-year history, the Hoosiers 
won a national championship.
For Berke, the national 
championship was the icing on 
the cake in a season where his 
love for hockey was rekindled.
“Sometimes, you don’t real-
ize what’s right for you,” he 
said. “I love where I ended up. 
Playing junior hockey felt like 
a job. There was a lot of pres-
sure. Maybe that would have 
been the same playing in an 
NCAA program.
“Club hockey has the right 
balance of seriousness and the 
fun of playing the sport you 
love. Also, my team at Indiana 
is a family. The best hockey 
family I’ve ever been a part of.”
Hockey has been a huge 
part of Berke’s life. 
In addition to playing 

junior hockey, his journey has 
included playing for Detroit in 
the JCC Maccabi Games from 
2016-18 and being a member 
of the gold medal-winning 
U.S. open division (ages 
19-40) team at the Maccabiah 
Games in Israel in 2022.
The 21-year-old freshman 
left wing from Farmington 
Hills had 10 goals and 10 
assists in 29 games this sea-
son for Indiana. He also was 
a member of the team’s top 
defensive line, which was 
assigned to cover opponents’ 
most dangerous line.
“Playing good defense has 
always been a part of my 
game,” Berke said. “[Indiana 
coach] Andrew Weiss is the 
first coach who has seen the 
value of it and put it to good 
use.”
Indiana beat Miami (Ohio) 
5-4 in overtime on March 15 
in the American Collegiate 
Hockey Association Division 2 
national championship game. 
Just before the Hoosiers 
scored the winning goal on a 
power play at 10:35 of over-
time, Berke helped kill off a 
Miami power play.
So what was Indiana’s path 
to the national championship?
Sixteen teams enter the 
ACHA Division 2 national 
tournament, which is a grind. 

Ryan Berke had 10 goals and 10 assists in 29 games this season for 
the national champion Indiana University club hockey team.

CHIP DELORENZO

Ryan Berke helps the Indiana 
University club hockey team win a 
national championship and gets his 
career back on track.

‘I Love Where 
I Ended Up’

STEVE STEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

SPORTS

62 | MARCH 28 • 2024 
J
N

That’s the Radakovich 
Cup that Ryan Burke is 
carrying after the Indiana 
University club hockey 
team won the ACHA 
Division 2 national 
 
championship earlier 
 
this month.

CHIP DELORENZO

