HockeyNYS - March 2012

Page 33

Hockey NYS

March 2012

Two New Yorkers on Preliminary 2012 U.S. National Team Roster

J

osephine Pucci, Pearl River, and Kelly Steadman, Plattsburgh have garnered spots on the roster for the 2012 Team USA that will participate in the IIHF Women’s World Championship set for April 7 through 14 in Burlington, Vermont. Pucci is currently a member of Harvard University’s women’s team and Steadman plays for Mercyhurst College. The athletes will take part in a training camp to be held March 25 through April 3 at the Olympic Center in Lake Placid. From there they will travel to Burlington to defend their back-toback world titles. Prior to the Championship, Team USA will play a local team in Lake Placid on March 29; play Team Canada in Ottawa on March 31 and hold an exhibition game against Finland at the Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid on April 3. Team USA versus Team Canada on opening day of the IIHF at 7 p.m. at Gutterson Arena in Burlington. Katie Stone will serve as head coach, assisted by Laura Halldorson and Bobby Jay. Halldorson led the University of Minnesota to three NCAA Division I national championships and was a member of the 1987 U.S. Women’s National team. Jay has coached in the International Hockey League, American Hockey League and NCAA. He also served as an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Lightning’s IHL affiliate, the Detroit Vipers and the Los Angeles King’s affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs.

Four (March 16 and 18). Junior defenseman Laura Fortino (Hamilton, Ont./Cornell University) and senior forward Rebecca Johnston (Sudbury, Ont./ Cornell University) were named along with senior forward Bailey Bram (Ste. Anne, Man./ Mercyhurst College), junior forward Brianna Decker (Dousman, Wis./University of Wisconsin), , junior forward Amanda Kessel (Madison, Wis./University of Minnesota), senior forward Hilary Knight (Sun Valley, Idaho/University of Wisconsin), junior forward Jocelyne Lamoureux (Grand Forks, N.D./University of North Dakota), junior forward/ defenseman Monique Lamoureux-Kolls (Grand Forks, N.D./University of North Dakota), senior goaltender Florence Schelling (Oberengstringen, Switz./ Northeastern University) and senior forward Natalie Spooner (Scarborough, Ont./Ohio State University). Julie Chu, winner of the award in 2007 and three-time Olympian, will be the keynote speaker for the award brunch and Laura Kennedy, a sports anchor and reporter for WDIO (ABC) in Duluth, Minn., will serve as the master of ceremonies. The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is annually presented to the top player in NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey. Selection criteria includes outstanding individual and team skills, sportsmanship, performance in the clutch, personal character, competitiveness and a love of hockey. Consideration is also given to academic achievement and civic involvement. The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is supported, in part, by a grant from the NHL Foundation. The Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman at Princeton University from 198186. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died on Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.*

USA Hockey News and Notes

Ten Finalists Named for 2012 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Two players from Cornell University have been named

in the ten finalists for the 2012 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award presented by Easton Foundations. The award, annually bestowed upon the top player in NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey, will be presented at a brunch ceremony on March 17 at the Greysolon Ballroom in Duluth, Minn., in conjunction with the NCAA Women’s Frozen

Page 33


Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.