St. Thomas Gets Look at Ring

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- St. Thomas won its fifth MCLA Division II national championship last spring, and the Tommies received their first look at the reward for the effort.

Each member of the St. Thomas squad will receive a ring with the school's crest on the face surrounded by two tiers of gems.

"We made sure we had our 18-0 record on the side with our conference, to remind us and celebrate everything we accomplished together as a unit," said senior All-American midfielder Simon Gondeck. "People thought our dynasty was over after two straight losses in the national semifinals. Every year we expect to be national champions, and anything less is a failure of a season in our eyes."

The Tommies averaged 18.0 goals per game in their four-game run to the title in 2016, which is the third highest in the history of the Division II tournament. St. Thomas had to rally in the championship game to defeat Grand Valley State, 10-7.