University of Minnesota Athletics
Gopher Greats Darwitz and Marvin Named Olympians
12/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
USA Hockey announced that former Gopher greats Natalie Darwitz and Gigi Marvin have been named to the United States Olympic Team. The duo are a part of 21 players named today, at a Mall of America ceremony in Bloomington, Minn. Darwitz, who is the team’s captain, will make her third-straight trek, while Marvin is making her first trip to the Winter Games. Marvin marks the fifth Golden Gopher to become a U.S. Olympian.
The squad, which is centralized in the Twin Cities, will continue its Qwest Tour with five major events leading up to the Olympics, held in Vancouver this February. Team USA’s next game will be on Dec. 30th at the Xcel Energy Center as it takes on Team Canada at 7:05 p.m. Following the Canada game, they play the ECAC All-Stars (Jan. 3) in Hamden, Conn., the University of Wisconsin (Jan. 5) in Madison, Wis., the Golden Gophers (Jan. 12) at Ridder Arena and Team Finland in Colorado Springs, Colo. (Feb. 4). The Olympic Winter Games will follow, starting February 12-28.
Natalie Darwitz will go down in history as one of Minnesota’s best female athletes. Darwitz, who joined the Gopher coaching staff in the 2008-09 season, is on leave to train for the Olympics. Playing for the Gophers from 2002-2005, Darwitz made her mark on the program. In 99 games played, the three-time All-American set the school record in career points with 246. Darwitz finished her Gopher career as a three-time, first-team All-WCHA, the WCHA Scoring Champion (2005) and the 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year. Also being named a Patty Kazmaier finalist all three years, she was in the top three as a junior in 2005. Darwitz helped the Gophers to back-to-back national championships in 2004 and 2005. She scored the game-winning goal for the Gophers in the 2005 win over Harvard with 1:08 remaining in the game and earned most valuable player honors en route to the program's third national championship.
As a member of Team USA, Darwitz has been the team’s captain since 2007. Competing in two previous Olympics, Darwitz earned a silver medal in 2002 and a bronze medal in 2006. An eight-time member of the U.S. Women’s National Team, she led Team USA to a gold medal at the world championships in 2008 and 2009, as the team captain for both teams. Named the youngest player to don the Red, White and Blue, at age 15, Darwitz was a four-time member of the Under-22 Team and was named the 2005 and 2008 USA Hockey’s Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year.
Gigi Marvin finished her Gopher career with 195 career points, ranking sixth overall in school history. A team co-captain in 2008-09, Marvin led the Gophers to their first NCAA Frozen Four appearance since 2006. A Patty Kazmaier top-10 finalist in 2009, Marvin was also named the WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year, Minnesota’s first honor since 2000. A Second-Team All-WCHA honoree in 2009, Marvin ranked third on the team in scoring with 65 points, including six points in NCAA competition and four points in post-season conference action. Of her 65 points, she led the Gophers with 21 power-play points. As a junior, Marvin was named a second-team All-American and a Patty Kazmaier finalist after holding a team-high 54 points. A three-time most valuable player for the Gophers, Marvin was a four-time All-WCHA selection and the 2006 WCHA Rookie of the Year.
On the USA Hockey scene, Marvin is a three-time member of the U.S. Women’s National Team that won back-to-back gold medals in 2008 and 2009 and a silver in 2007. Along with competing for Team USA in four-consecutive Four Nations Cups, Marvin was also a three-time member of the U.S. Under-22 Team. Marvin comes from a family with strong USA Hockey connections. Her grandfather, Cal Marvin, coached the 1958 U.S. Men’s National Ice Hockey Team and was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982. She is the first female in the Marvin family to make an Olympic team.
The squad, which is centralized in the Twin Cities, will continue its Qwest Tour with five major events leading up to the Olympics, held in Vancouver this February. Team USA’s next game will be on Dec. 30th at the Xcel Energy Center as it takes on Team Canada at 7:05 p.m. Following the Canada game, they play the ECAC All-Stars (Jan. 3) in Hamden, Conn., the University of Wisconsin (Jan. 5) in Madison, Wis., the Golden Gophers (Jan. 12) at Ridder Arena and Team Finland in Colorado Springs, Colo. (Feb. 4). The Olympic Winter Games will follow, starting February 12-28.
Natalie Darwitz will go down in history as one of Minnesota’s best female athletes. Darwitz, who joined the Gopher coaching staff in the 2008-09 season, is on leave to train for the Olympics. Playing for the Gophers from 2002-2005, Darwitz made her mark on the program. In 99 games played, the three-time All-American set the school record in career points with 246. Darwitz finished her Gopher career as a three-time, first-team All-WCHA, the WCHA Scoring Champion (2005) and the 2003 WCHA Rookie of the Year. Also being named a Patty Kazmaier finalist all three years, she was in the top three as a junior in 2005. Darwitz helped the Gophers to back-to-back national championships in 2004 and 2005. She scored the game-winning goal for the Gophers in the 2005 win over Harvard with 1:08 remaining in the game and earned most valuable player honors en route to the program's third national championship.
As a member of Team USA, Darwitz has been the team’s captain since 2007. Competing in two previous Olympics, Darwitz earned a silver medal in 2002 and a bronze medal in 2006. An eight-time member of the U.S. Women’s National Team, she led Team USA to a gold medal at the world championships in 2008 and 2009, as the team captain for both teams. Named the youngest player to don the Red, White and Blue, at age 15, Darwitz was a four-time member of the Under-22 Team and was named the 2005 and 2008 USA Hockey’s Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year.
Gigi Marvin finished her Gopher career with 195 career points, ranking sixth overall in school history. A team co-captain in 2008-09, Marvin led the Gophers to their first NCAA Frozen Four appearance since 2006. A Patty Kazmaier top-10 finalist in 2009, Marvin was also named the WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year, Minnesota’s first honor since 2000. A Second-Team All-WCHA honoree in 2009, Marvin ranked third on the team in scoring with 65 points, including six points in NCAA competition and four points in post-season conference action. Of her 65 points, she led the Gophers with 21 power-play points. As a junior, Marvin was named a second-team All-American and a Patty Kazmaier finalist after holding a team-high 54 points. A three-time most valuable player for the Gophers, Marvin was a four-time All-WCHA selection and the 2006 WCHA Rookie of the Year.
On the USA Hockey scene, Marvin is a three-time member of the U.S. Women’s National Team that won back-to-back gold medals in 2008 and 2009 and a silver in 2007. Along with competing for Team USA in four-consecutive Four Nations Cups, Marvin was also a three-time member of the U.S. Under-22 Team. Marvin comes from a family with strong USA Hockey connections. Her grandfather, Cal Marvin, coached the 1958 U.S. Men’s National Ice Hockey Team and was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982. She is the first female in the Marvin family to make an Olympic team.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's HockeyHighlights: Gophers 5, St. Cloud State 3
Saturday, October 11
Highlights: Gophers 4, St. Cloud State 1
Friday, October 10
Highlights: Gophers 5, Boston 2
Saturday, October 04
Highlights: Gophers 5, Boston 0
Friday, October 03