{"id":237677,"date":"2026-03-26T15:38:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T15:38:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/237677\/"},"modified":"2026-03-26T15:38:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T15:38:08","slug":"fresno-state-club-ice-hockey-fights-for-growth-hosts-final-game-of-season-saturday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/237677\/","title":{"rendered":"Fresno State Club Ice Hockey Fights for Growth, Hosts Final Game of Season Saturday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Fresno State Ice Hockey Club will close out its season with a senior night matchup against the Fresno Pigeons Hockey Club on Saturday at Gateway Ice Center in Fresno.<\/p>\n<p>The game is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. and will also feature Greek Night, with campus organizations competing to bring out the largest crowd.<\/p>\n<p>The club, which was revived in 2023 after years of inactivity, continues to rebuild its roster and fan base in a region not traditionally known for hockey. \u201cWe\u2019re building something that isn\u2019t traditionally existing in the Central Valley,\u201d said Torrance Carpenter, the team\u2019s general manager. \u201cWe\u2019re building a culture.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a data-no-instant=\"1\" href=\"https:\/\/gvwire.com\/contact\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" class=\"a2t-link\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"GVWire-Ad-Get-our-mobile-app-1280\u00d790-1\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GVWire-Ad-Get-our-mobile-app-1280x90-1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"   width=\"1280\" height=\"90\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Carpenter said the program has faced long-standing challenges, including limited access to ice time and funding. \u201cHockey is very expensive and especially ice with there only being one rink in the entire town,\u201d Carpenter said. \u201cSo we pretty much have to fight for that ice, essentially.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite those hurdles, the team has grown its schedule and participation. After starting with a minimal number of games in its first season back, the club planned for 12 games this year but played slightly fewer due to cancellations.<\/p>\n<p>Club Raises Their Own Funds<\/p>\n<p>Unlike NCAA programs, the Fresno State club <a href=\"https:\/\/linktr.ee\/fresnostatehockeyclub?utm%C2%A7source=ig&amp;utm%C2%A7medium=social&amp;utm%C2%A7content=link%C2%A7in%C2%A7bio\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">operates largely on its own funding<\/a>. Carpenter said the team relies on student government grants, fundraising efforts, and sponsorships, with players often contributing out of pocket. Ticket sales from games go directly back to the team.<\/p>\n<p>Carpenter emphasized the team\u2019s broader mission of accessibility and development. \u201cThese are people who truly just want to play hockey and go to school,\u201d Carpenter said. The club also welcomes new players with little experience, adding \u201cstudents are coming up to us at club dates and saying, \u2018I want to play hockey.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n<p>Practices are held late at night due to limited rink availability, often beginning as late as 11 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>Looking ahead, Carpenter said the long-term vision is to grow the program into a more established presence on the West Coast, pointing to other schools that have successfully transitioned from club teams to NCAA programs.<\/p>\n<p>Tickets for Saturday\u2019s game are free for Fresno State students, with discounted prices available for seniors, veterans and children. Discounted tickets must be purchased at the door.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fresnostatebulldoghockey.com\/games\/game-vs-fresno-pigeons-hockey-club-on-03282026-mlzjfgvv\/tickets\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Click here to learn more about tickets.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Connect with\u00a0\u00a0on social media. Got a tip? Send an\u00a0.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Fresno State Ice Hockey Club will close out its season with a senior night matchup against the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":237678,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[112,114,113],"class_list":{"0":"post-237677","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fresno","8":"tag-fresno","9":"tag-fresno-headlines","10":"tag-fresno-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=237677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/237677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/237678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=237677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=237677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=237677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}