University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota/Minnesota Duluth Quotes
3/4/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
2017 WCHA FINAL FACE-OFF - Quotes
MINNESOTA DULUTH
Minnesota Duluth Head Coach Maura Crowell
Opening Statement
"The game was fast, with dynamic players going for both teams. I thought the Gophers played fantastic. We came out strong in the end. I thought we weathered a lot of pressure at times, 63 shots against, but we figured it out and put the puck in the net when we needed to. These two players next to me are had a big part in that, Maddie (Rooney) was outstanding and (Lara) Stalder of course getting the big goal in the end. Can't say enough about the way the team preserved and got it done in the end."
On the tight game…
"It was a great game and could have gone either way. You can talk about fatigue and all those things, but I think the momentum and the confidence from winning such a tight game will carry us into tomorrow."
On goalie Maddie Rooney…
"Ice in her veins. She stood tall and was fantastic."
Minnesota Duluth Forward Lara Stalder
On the game-winning goal…
"It came high and I whacked at it and it goes in. I knew it wasn't higher than the crossbar right away."
On the defeating Minnesota…
"Beating the Gophers at Ridder, I don't think we have done that in how many years now. It feels unbelievable."
On what winning a trophy would mean to the team…
"Team awards mean more to a player, so we really want it tomorrow."
Minnesota Duluth Goalie Maddie Rooney
On fatigue…
"You get tired at times, but it's just a battle mentally and you've got to do whatever you can to keep the puck out of the net."
On looking forward…
"This win has definitely given us motivation."
2017 WCHA FINAL FACE-OFF - Quotes
MINNESOTA
Minnesota Head Coach Brad Frost
Opening Statement
"Well what a hockey game. Certainly, we wish we were on the other end of it, but I told our players to keep their heads high. We had chances. There was no question, Sidney Peters played great in net for us, in particular that big save in the first overtime. Three breakaways in that first overtime, outshooting them 20 to 8 in the first overtime, over 100 some odd attempts here tonight. I'm really proud of our kids, sometimes you win games the wrong way and lose games the right way-certainly we wish we didn't lose, but we did things right. Tonight, the big scoreboard at the end of the game said that we lost, but for us we'll learn from it and hopefully move on and play next weekend."
On the Minnesota/Minnesota Duluth historic rivalry…
"It's been really exciting, Maura [Crowell] has done a great job there with the staff, and full credit to their staff for being the WCHA Staff of the Year and Maura, Coach of the Year. Their senior class is one of the best to come through Duluth and the history of their program. It's great for our league and great for women's hockey in general."
On how UMD has improved over the years…
"It starts in net certainly with Maddie, she's been playing exceptional. She has over a .940 save percentage which speaks for itself, and All-WCHA player. Stalder, Brykaliuk, McGovern, Morin… their senior class has been through some pretty tough times and you look at them and they have been pretty resilient in the face of that adversity and now they are really leading their team. They're deep, in the sense that they have three lines that they can play, but that first line is certainly one of the best in the country."
On NCAA tournament hopes…
"I think we are in, we are hoping that we are in, but until everything rolls out tomorrow we're not sure. I would imagine that if we are outside the top four, which I would think we would be, I would imagine we would head back up to Duluth."
Minnesota Forward Dani Cameranesi
On missing the last six weeks and coming back to play…
"I'm feeling great, I was actually just joking, saying I missed too many games so they wanted to throw it at me right away. It was a lot of fun and battling out every single second and being back on the ice with my family feels really great."
On chances of making it into the NCAA tournament…
"I'm not sure. It all depends on what happens throughout the league tomorrow. And what happened today, I'm not really sure being on the ice for so long, but hopefully we get the chance to play again. If it is against Duluth, or if it is against whoever it is we are playing, I'm pretty positive that we will do really well and we will fight back and hopefully get a win next weekend."
Minnesota Forward Sarah Potomak
On facing Minnesota Duluth goalie Maddie Rooney and her saves…
"Definitely would like to have some of those back, but she stood on her head and played unbelievable and so did our goalie Sid (Peters). It was just a battle between the two goalies it felt like, but she's a great goalie so I give her the credit she deserves."
On having opportunities in the game…
"It's kind of a though pill to swallow but I'm really proud of our team and the way we played. We never gave up and we stuck together and battled right until the end. So, we are not going to dwell on it, we are just going to move forward and do the best we can, hopefully next weekend."
