UNION LAKE, Mich. – (April 18, 2020) – The 2020 American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Men's Division 1 Rookie of the Year Award  goes to Liberty University defenseman Colin Baird, as selected by the Head Coaches of ACHA Men's Division 1.  Colin is the first defenseman to win the award in its 18 year history dating back to the 2002-2003 season.

Colin Baird, a 6-foot, 5-inch, 200-pound freshman from Shoreview, Minn., who was named Liberty University’s Rookie of the Year, capped off a fantastic season with the Flames by scoring nine goals and distributing 22 assists for 31 points in 37 games, second most among the team’s defensemen.

He netted two goals and one assist in the third period an 8-2 rout of Ohio University during Liberty’s second “Midnight Mayhem” matchup at the LaHaye Ice Center on Nov. 8, helping the then-eighth-ranked Flames break open a 4-2 contest and gain separation from the No. 9 Bobcats in the ACHA rankings.

With Baird’s contributions, the Flames finished the season with the No. 2 ranking, the highest in program history.  19th-year Head Coach Kirk Handy, who was named the 2020 ACHA Men’s Division 1 Coach of the Year for the first time, declared “I am extremely proud to have Colin as a Flame. On and off the ice he is a fantastic representation of Liberty University.”

Prior to arriving at Liberty, where he is pursuing a degree in Business Administration, Baird played 21 games in the United States Hockey League with the Des Moines Buccaneers and 72 games in the North American Hockey League with the Minnesota Wilderness. He is one of six siblings and the first to play hockey.