University of Minnesota Athletics
GOPHERS HEAd TO BOSTON FOR AWCHA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
3/21/2000 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
The Gophers face WCHA-Women's League regular-season and playoff champion Minnesota-Duluth (25-3-1) at 7 p.m. CST Friday in one semifinal game. Top-ranked Brown (24- 3-3) faces fourth-seeded Dartmouth (20-11-0) in the first semifinal game at 4 p.m. The third-place game is slated for 3 p.m. on Saturday, followed by the championship game at 6 p.m.
GOPHER REWIND-In its most recent action, Minnesota dropped a 2-0 decision to Minnesota-Duluth in the title game of the inaugural WCHA-Women's League Championship, March 4, in Bloomington, Minn.
The Gophers posted a pair of shutout victories, 10- 0 over MSU, Mankato and 5-0 over Wisconsin, in their first two tournament games to earn their place in the championship game opposite the Bulldogs.
In the tournament opener, junior Nadine Muzerall (Mississauga, Ontario/Kimball Union Academy) scored three goals and 16 of 17 skaters scored points as Minnesota eliminated MSU, Mankato. Junior Winny Brodt (Roseville, Minn./Roseville Area) and sophomore Tracy Engstrom (Willmar, Minn./Willmar) both had two goals and an assist while the Gophers had a season-high 60 shots on goal while holding the Mavericks to just six, also a season-best.
The following day, Engstrom and senior Shannon Kennedy (Woburn, Mass./Buckingham Browne & Nichols) each had a pair of goals in a 5-0 win over Wisconsin. Junior Erica Killewald (Troy, Mich./Troy) had 17 saves for her sixth shutout of the season.
In Saturday's championship game, Minnesota got a 36-save effort from Killewald but was unable to overcome a 31-save effort by tournament MVP Tuula Puputti as Minnesota-Duluth claimed the league title and an automatic berth in the AWCHA Championship.
BRINGING HOME THE HARDWARE-Three Gophers earned recognition on the all-tournament team. Erica Killewald, who stopped 53 of 55 shots in two games, was joined by Tracy Engstrom, who had a pair of goals in Minnesota's first two games, at forward and Winny Brodt, who registered four points, on defense.
Earning first-team All-WCHA honors were forward Nadine Muzerall and defense Winny Brodt. The Gophers placed four players on the second team. Sophomore goalie Crystal Nicholas (Tulsa, Okla./Union) was joined by junior Courtney Kennedy (Woburn, Mass./Buckingham Browne & Nichols) on defense, and junior Ambria Thomas (Fairbanks, Alaska/West Valley) and sophomore Laura Slominski (Burnsville, Minn./Burnsville) at forward.
Two of the league's top awards also went to Minnesota. Brodt was named the league's defensive player of the year while Shannon Kennedy shared the league's student-athlete of the year award with MSU, Mankato's Katie Beauduy.
Eight players earned WCHA All-Academic Team honors for the Gophers. Kennedy, Brodt and Slominski were joined by junior forward Kris Scholz (Hugo, Minn.), junior defense Angela Borek (Burnsville, Minn./ Burnsville) and Emily Buchholz (Waupun, Wis./Waupun), along with goalie Nicholas and Erica Killewald.
ALL GOOD THINGS MUST COME TO AN END-With their loss to UMD, Minnesota's school-record 21-game unbeaten streak came to an end, a streak which saw the Gophers go 20-0-1 from Dec. 11 to Mar. 3.
During that streak, Minnesota outscored opponents 130-34 and were 32-for-105 (30.4%) on the power-play while scoring 12 short-handed goals.
THE BUZZ ON MUZ-Forward Nadine Muzerall saw her 20-game point-scoring streak snapped in the Gophers' 5-0 win over Wisconsin. The nation's leading goal-scorer (46) recorded her fifth hat trick of the season against MSU, Mankato and established a new school record for single- season points (73).
During her streak, which included a 16-game goal- scoring streak, she scored 36 goals, including 11 power- play goals and five game-winning goals, and 52 points. She leads the nation in goals, power-play goals (15), power-play points (26) and game-winning goals (8).
GOING OUT IN STYLE-In her final home game, Feb. 27, Shannon Kennedy assisted on one goal and scored the game-winner against Wisconsin.
In the WCHA tournament, she scored two goals, including the game-winner, against the Badgers, giving her 18 points in her last 20 games. She has six goals, including four-game winners, and 11 points in her last 10 games. Kennedy's five game-winning goals on the season tie her for eighth nationally.
TOMMY, CAN YOU HEAR ME-With a pair of two-assist games during the WCHA Championship, Ambria Thomas extended her assist-scoring streak to seven games before having it snapped in Saturday's title tilt.
During the team's 21-game unbeaten streak, she scored points in 20 games, notching 14 goals and 43 points. She ranks second nationally in both short-handed goals (5) and points (7).
THE COURT REPORT-A strong second half of the season secured Courtney Kennedy's place on the All-WCHA team.
After scoring just two goals and 11 points, including a five-assist effort against MSU, Mankato, Nov. 23, in her first 15 games, Kennedy tallied 23 points and a plus/minus rating of +29 during the team's 21-game unbeaten streak. Her 26 assists and 34 points this season are both career highs.
SOPHOMORE SENSATIONS-The duo of Laura Slominski and Tracy Engstrom has been a key factor in Minnesota's school-record 30-win season.
Slominski, after scoring 10 goals and 32 points in 34 games last season, has had a breakout season this year, earning second-team all-league honors. She topped virtually all of her offensive numbers from a year ago, including 24 goals, 34 assists and 58 points. She also leads the nation with eight short-handed points.
Engstrom, who had four goals in the WCHA Championship to earn all-tournament honors, had 12 goals and 27 points last year in 33 games. Like her classmate, she has surpassed all of last year's number and gives the Gophers their school-record fifth 20-goal, 50-point scorer this season, sporting totals of 22 goals, 29 assists and 51 points.
GOALIES SHOWCASE OTHER SKILLS-Not only did Gopher goalies Erica Killewald and Crystal Nicholas earn awards for their on-ice accomplishments, both rank among the top 10 nationally in goals against average and also earned spots on the Academic All-WCHA Team.
Killewald, despite losing in the league championship game, turned in her sixth 30-plus save effort of the season and has 15 wins and six shutouts on the season.
Nicholas also collected a shutout in the league tournament, beating MSU, Mankato 10-0. Her 10th career shutout also gave her 15 wins on the season and a perfect 25-0-0 career record.
POWER OUTAGE-Minnesota's power play helped spark its 21- game unbeaten streak but, during WCHA Championship, the Gophers converted just one of 16 chances.
Minnesota still sports a nation-best 49 power-play goals and ranks second in efficiency (27.2%).
NATURAL BORN KILLERS-After killing 13 of 14 penalties during the league championship, Minnesota has killed 130 of 140 (92.9%) since Nov. 7. While allowing just 10 power-play goals in its last 29 games, Minnesota has scored 12 short-handed goals.
FIRST GOAL WINS...USUALLY-Minnesota is 22-0-1 this season when scoring first and 8-6-0 when its opponent scores first. In three seasons, Minnesota has scored first in 76 of 102 games and is 69-3-4 in those games. The Gophers have been scored upon first just 27 times and are 11-14-2 in those games.
THE OPPONENTS-Minnesota-Duluth: The Bulldogs hold a 3-1- 1 advantage in five games played with the Gophers this year. Led by national scoring leader and WCHA player of the year Jenny Schmidgall, Minnesota-Duluth has the top scoring offense in the country, averaging 6.13 goals per game.
WCHA rookie of the year Maria Rooth, the national leader in short-handed goals, and goalie Tuula Puputti, who joined the team in January, have also been instrumental in the Bulldogs' success.
Head coach Shannon Miller is a 1985 graduate of the University of Saskatchewan. She led Canada to a silver medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics and, in her first collegiate season, earned WCHA coach of the year honors, guiding her team to a 25-3-3 record.
Brown: The Bears are ranked number one in the nation and won both the ECAC regular-season and playoff titles this season, doing so without the services of Patty Kazmaier Award finalist Tara Mounsey down the stretch.
With just one other player, forward Tamra Jones, averaging more than a point per game, Brown has won with defense, ranking second nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 1.33 goals per game. Goalie Ali Brewer ranks second in the nation in both save percentage and goals against average.
The Bears hold a 3-2-1 edge in their all-time series with Minnesota. However, the Gophers have won the last two meetings.
Head coach Margaret Degidio-Murphy is the longest- tenured active coach in women's college hockey in her 11th season. A 1983 graduate of Cornell, she was the 1997 ECAC and New England Hockey Writers' coach of the year and was named the Women's Hockey News national coach of the year in 1998. She has a career record of 184-73-23.
Dartmouth: A youthful Big Green squad, which features just one senior on its roster along with 14 first or second-year players, has an offense boasting eight players who have scored more than 25 points, led by Correne Bredin's 43 points and Carly Haggard's 20 goals, and a goaltending tandem of Meaghan Cahill and Amy Ferguson which has combined for a 2.16 goals against average, a .909 save percentage and five shutouts.
Dartmouth coach Judy Parish Oberting is in hew second season at her alma mater, having graduated in 1991 after playing four seasons for the Big Green. She has compiled a career record of 36-20-5 and was recently named the ECAC coach of the year.
