TROY, N.Y. -- Rensselaer head coach Seth Appert will serve as head coach of the U.S. Under-18 Select Team, USA Hockey today announced. Appert will guide the 21-player U.S. squad that will participate in the 2008 Memorial of Ivan Hlinka Tournament August 12-16 in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Piestany, Slovakia.

"I'm honored to represent our country with these twenty-one fine young men," said Appert. "This group has an outstanding mix of skill, competitiveness and hockey intelligence which will allow us to contend for the gold medal."

Appert, who served as an assistant coach for the Under-18 Select Team in August of 2007, is entering his third season with the Engineers, having led RPI to an 11-23-4 record in 2007-08. The 2008-09 Engineers return 20 players from that team, including 11 forwards, eight defensemen and a goaltender. Eight newcomers are expected in the fall.

Since taking over in 2006-07, Appert has led the Engineers to a 21-41-12 record. The team has won back-to-back titles at the Governor's Cup and has seen multiple student-athletes earn National and All-League recognition, including Kirk MacDonald '07, who a Lowe's Senior CLASS All-America First Team selection and a finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award.

Prior to joining Rensselaer, Appert spent nine seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Denver, where he was responsible for recruiting, on-ice coaching, video breakdown, and game analysis work. He also played a big role in the development of Denver's goaltenders.

A collegiate netminder at Ferris State University, Appert individually coached one All-American, two All-Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) honorees, two WCHA Playoff Most Valuable Players, and two Frozen Four Most Outstanding Players at Denver. Three of his goaltenders were draft picks of the National Hockey League, including one Hobey Baker Award finalist. Two of those netminders have gone on to play in the NHL.

Appert helped Denver sign nationally ranked recruiting classes during his nine-year tenure with the Pioneers. Among those he coached or recruited were the 2006 Hobey Baker Award winner, eight All-Americans, a WCHA Player of the Year, 22 All-WCHA picks, three WCHA Defensive Players of the Year, two WCHA Student-Athletes of the Year, and 17 NHL draft picks at Denver. The Pioneers averaged over 23 wins per year during his tenure as an assistant coach and captured two NCAA National Championships, three WCHA playoff championships, and two WCHA regular-season titles in his years of coaching at Denver.

A four-year letterwinner at Ferris State from 1992-96, Appert and his wife, Jill, have two daughters, Addison and Campbell.