Coach Jim Barry and his Naval Academy Ice Hockey Club received the good news yesterday while preparing for its 15th annual Crab Pot Tournament this weekend at Dahlgren Hall.

The Midshipmen's club team has qualified for the national tournament for the second year in a row,as the eighth and final seed.

Sanctioned by the American Collegiate Hockey Association, the tournament is set for Feb. 26-29 at Penn State University.

Navy (11-2) was ranked No. 10 last week by the ACHA, but two impressive victories over the College Militaire Royale of Canada, 9-4 and 6-4, along with last Saturday night's 7-1 romp at North Carolina State, convinced the pollsters that the Mids belonged.

"After our win Saturday night at N.C. State, we were confident that we were going to make it," said Barry. "It was great to hear that we did."

Navy opens defense of its Crab Pot title at 1 p.m. tomorrow vs. West Virginia, while the University of Maryland and Worcester-Polytechnic (Mass.) play at 4 p.m. The winners will meet for the championship at 4 p.m. Sunday.