2026-2027 BOARD

President: Ben Marter 

Ben is a lifelong hockey player and has coached Ice Dogs hockey since 2013, at the LTP, 8U, 10U, 12U, and 14U levels. He joined the board in 2020 as 8U Director and ran the Club’s CCHL program from 2023 to 2026, through the lean years and return to Mount Vernon. He believes passionately in the Club’s mission of offering fun, competitive, family-friendly hockey in our community, and will continue to work with the Board, our families, and key stakeholders to position the Club for steady growth and continued success.  

Vice President: Will Heaton 

Will has been part of the Ice Dogs since 2016 when his son began playing in the Learn to Play program. Since that time both his son and daughter have continued to play on teams in the Club for the last 10 years. He has coached many teams over this time and most recently helped organize and run the Club’s relaunch of the Learn to Play program. He began serving on the Board in 2021 and most recently served as Secretary of the Board for the last three years. The Ice Dogs organization has been a wonderful part of his son’s and daughter's growth over the last ten years, and he appreciates the chance to continue giving back to the Club so it can provide these same opportunities to many more young skaters.  

Treasurer: H.B. Swoope 

H.B., current NVHC Treasurer, has served on the Board of Directors as Treasurer for the past 15 years. H.B. has had one son begin in cross ice and play through all levels and another son begin in cross ice and is now a second year 18U. In his time as Treasurer, he has helped automate the Club's payment system and migrated through three registration platforms and helped the Club navigate through the COVID years. H.B. has enjoyed working with the BOD and NVHC families to ensure a fun, safe and affordable hockey program.

Secretary: Jen Myers 

Jen has been part of the Ice Dogs since 2022 after hearing another family rave about the hockey community, and this past season, her two kids played on the 14U Red and 16U/18U Red teams. She began volunteering with the board as web manager in 2023, helping transition the Club from its old site to a new, more vibrant website, and she's supported other board initiatives, including the DC Blossoms girls' team and overall communications efforts. She has prior board experience with a local nonprofit, and she looks forward to using her background to support the Club. 

CCHL Director: Courtney Cheney 

Courtney has been involved with the Ice Dogs organization since 2018, serving as a LTP, 8U, and 12U coach. As a Board Member-at-large since 2024, Courtney has assisted with fundraising, team assessments, and additional projects. In addition to hockey, he has coached more than a dozen seasons of youth sports in the Fort Hunt area, and prides himself on teaching the critical skills necessary to execute in competition, while emphasizing the importance of teamwork, good sportsmanship, and leadership. 

CBHL Director: Liz Townsend  

Liz has been a part of the Ice Dogs since her son, now 18U, started at LTP and was a 10U and 14U team manager. This year she volunteered her time to spearhead the newsletter, support key communications efforts, the raffle, and Ice Dog Night and served as the CBHL director as the Club prepared to return to Mt. Vernon and relaunch its CBHL program. Her goal is to continue to support the Club and position us for great success in the future.  

Girls’ Hockey Director: Open 

8U Director: Jaeson Scott 

Jaeson has been coaching within the NOVA Ice Dogs 8U program since 2023 and helped coach the 10U CBHL team for the 2025-2026 season. In addition to hockey, he coaches baseball and soccer, bringing a coaching background that began over 22 years ago. As a lifelong athlete, Jaeson is committed to fostering a fun, learning-focused environment where players can grow to love the game of ice hockey. The Ice Dogs community has been a wonderful experience for both of his kids, and Jaeson is eager to pay that forward to other young athletes starting their ice hockey journey.

Board Member At-Large: Chris Upham 

Chris has been an Ice Dog parent and coach for the last 7 years. He has two sons in the program and is excited to continue coaching with their teams at the 12U and 14U levels in addition to having coached in the spring program. Chris served on the Ice Dogs board for the last two years in the "At-Large" position and took on the roles of coordinating parent's Safe Sport certification to align our Club with USA Hockey's priorities of player safety as well as coordinating team photos. Chris loves serving on the Ice Dogs Board because he’s grateful for the opportunities the Ice Dogs have given his kids to grow and develop in their love of hockey. He would like to continue serving on the board to help the organization in this exciting time as the IceDogs are growing and having so much fun and success as a Club. 

Board Member At-Large: Sammy Entabi 

Sammy is the current 16u CBHL Head Coach and has coached travel ice hockey for the last four years. He started his hockey career with the NOVA Ice Dogs in 2002 and was on the only Ice Dogs team to play in the USA Hockey National Championship winning the 2014 16U Bronze Medal. He played collegiately at Penn State for the Club team winning multiple league titles and competing in the ACHA National Championships on two occasions. Sammy wishes to give back to the Club that taught him how to play the game he loves and build back a competitive program that is affordable to families and pushes back against the toxic culture that influences youth sports today.

 

KEY VOLUNTEERS

• Scheduler: Phil Erdie
• Registrar: Erica Rabe
• Special Initiatives Manager: Kristi Carbone
• PVAHA Rep: Andy Mueller
• Social Media Manager: Sally Velez
• Uniform Chair: Lauren McMahon
• CCHL Tournament Manager: Paul Moretti