SPORTS A Rush from Olympus Harvard’s world-beating skaters dominate the ice.

This isn’t their first team January-February 2001, page e≠ort, not by a long shot. “For 80). The three stars form the so many years, they have spent core of one of Harvard’s best so much time on the same teams ever. sheet of ice together that each They have gone through the knows where the other is all ECAC conference like a demo- the time,” says , lition crew, burying Dart- head coach of women’s ice mouth (9-2) and New Hamp- hockey. “They know when the shire (7-1), then ranked fourth. other one will head into an In a 9-0 blowout of Wayne open space on the ice, when State, Ruggiero tied a Harvard the puck should get there and record by netting five goals. at what speed. When Angela The mayhem climaxed in a 17- is about to shoot from the 2 obliteration of Boston Col- point, Julie is already adjust- lege that set a single-game ing in front of the net to the Harvard scoring record. That place where the rebound night, Botterill set another should be, if there is one.” Harvard single-game record Such coordination is deadly with 10 points on three goals to opponents, as proven by and seven assists, Chu added the damage Olympians An- four goals and four assists, and gela Ruggiero ’02 (’04) and Ruggiero two goals and five ’06 have done to assists. teams from all over the world. Harvard’s lone defeat was Skating for the , an early 4-3 loss to Minnesota, the duo brought home silver the day after the Crimson had medals from the 2002 Salt vanquished the defending na- Lake City Games (Ruggiero tional champions, Minnesota- also has a gold from Nagano Duluth, 2-1. Harvard, Min- in 1998). Along with their nesota, Minnesota-Duluth, Crimson teammates, they are and Dartmouth are the top now dominating the domestic contenders for the NCAA ice: after 16 games, Harvard, title, which Minnesota-Du- 15-1 overall and 7-0 in the U.S. Olympic team and Harvard teammates: wing Julie Chu ’06 (left) and luth has held for the past two ECAC, was the top-ranked defender ’02 (’04) at Bright Hockey Center. seasons. This year the tourna- women’s team in America. and 21 assists for 42 points; they are the na- ment will be on their home ice. Through that point, Harvard had the tion’s second and third leading scorers. nation’s top o≠ense, averaging nearly 7 The country’s top scorer is a third Chu and ruggiero both took to hockey goals per game, as well as the top defense, Olympian, ’02 (’03), who early and played as the only girls on boys’ with a one per game average; goalie had tallied 22 goals and 33 assists for 55 teams for several years. Both attended Jessica Ruddock ’04 leads the country in points. Botterill took a silver at Nagano and Choate Rosemary Hall and lettered in that category. Harvard also has the coun- a gold at Salt Lake City, skating for Canada, three sports. They didn’t skate together try’s top-rated power play and is number and also won the 2001 Kazmeier Award, there, but did team up on a girls’ select one in penalty killing. Individually, at mid- given to the supreme individual player in team, the Connecticut Polar Bears, which season, Ruggiero had 15 goals and 31 assists women’s collegiate hockey in the United won the national championship in 1995, for 46 points, while Chu recorded 21 goals States (see “The Unstoppable Botterill,” when Ruggiero was 15 and Chu 13, and

Photograph by Stu Rosner JOHN HARVARD’S JOURNAL

1996. They reunited on the U.S. national tina both played hockey: the former for my big ponytail. But at age 10 I was a head team for the 2001 World Championships. Skidmore College, the latter for the Polar taller than the boys. I was always aggres- Contrasting the two, their coach says of Bears. Julie began figure skating at eight, sive. They introduced checking when I Ruggiero, a defender: “She’s very power- but that phase lasted only about two was 11. I liked throwing checks.” ful, very succinct. Angela has great months, since she quickly fell in love with Ruggiero came east to Choate Rose- strength coupled with tremendous hockey. “It’s incredible what you can do mary Hall, and played with the Connecti- agility.” As for Chu, who played center for on the ice,” she says. “Obviously, playing cut Polar Bears national championship the U.S. team and plays right wing at Har- hockey isn’t the most natural thing in the teams in 1995, 1996, and 1997. Besides goal- vard, “Julie will run down any puck,” says world, but when you are out there, every- tending in soccer, she threw the discus, Stone. “She will never be out-hustled. thing actually feels so natural.” javelin, and shot put; she set Choate She’s unselfish—she’s very much a play- Chu looks up to her relatives, like a records in all three field events and a New maker.” Botterill calls Ruggiero “one of the grandmother who worked in sweatshops England shot-put mark of 39 feet, 10 inches. most dominant defenders in all of wom- to help the family, and also admires ath- She has been on national en’s hockey—she’s an intimidating force letes like versatile New York Rangers de- teams since she was 15. Two years later, in out there,” and says Chu “floats on the ice. fenseman Brian Leetch. She is versatile 1998, she was the youngest member of the Julie is a smooth player, who has such herself; at Choate Rosemary Hall she was, American squad that played in places like great vision and soft hands. She makes like Ruggiero, a soccer goalie. She also Finland and Sweden and eventually beat plays and also has the ability to finish.” played first base for the softball team and Canada 3-1 at Nagano to win gold. “That Known to teammates as “Chuey,” Julie led in batting. “Julie’s a great, great team- year was amazing,” she says. “Everything Chu grew up in Fairfield, Connecticut. Her mate,” Ruggiero says. “She gets better came true for me.” father, Wah, a computer software consul- every year. I was so excited when I heard She settled on Harvard for several rea- tant, came to from Hong she was coming here.” sons, including the fact that “the kids on Kong; his mother was from a village in Can- Ruggiero grew up in Simi Valley, Cali- the team here are so balanced—they’re ton. Mother Miriam is half Chinese and fornia, and hails from a hockey family: her balanced o≠ the ice. It’s not like a scholar- half Puerto Rican. Chu is the sole Asian- father, Bill, was a goalie. Her younger ship school,” the government concentra- American woman on the U.S. team, and as brother, Billy, tended goal on the Pasadena tor says. “We’ve got poets on the team, such is something of a role model. At one Maple Leafs club team that had Angela people who are into the guitar, or really hockey camp, the mother of a young Asian skating with the boys, and he later turned into their courses. On the U.S. team, our girl approached her to relate her daughter’s semi-pro. “There were only about 10 rinks life is hockey. Here, the students bring a remark: “Mom, there’s someone out there in when I started,” she says. lot of other things to the rink.” who looks like me.” Chu notes that, with “When[Wayne] Gretzky came [to play They don’t bring body-checking, since women’s hockey growing so fast, “There’ll for the LA Kings] in 1988, that made the women’s hockey disallows it. Nonethe- be more diversity in the sport. But as far as sport popular.” In a way, being the only less, as a freshman, Ruggiero had the most hockey goes—we’re athletes. The puck girl in a boys’ league helped Ruggiero de- penalty minutes on the team. “I may have doesn’t care where you come from.” velop as a player. “I always felt I had to set a record,” she laughs. “A 110-pound girl Although her parents were not athletic, prove myself on the ice,” she recalls. “Kids would fly o≠ me and hit the ice. I had to Chu’s older siblings Richard and Chris- would call me names as soon as they saw learn techniques to hold them up so they don’t fall—if they fall, you get a penalty.” Her time in the box has decreased, but her Winter Sports Ivy champion Penn, 80-71, with Hana defense has only improved, and Ruggiero Peljto ’04 tossing in a season-high 32 is proud of the Crimson’s stingy one-goal- Men’s Basketball points. Peljto leads the squad in scoring per-game average. The hoopsters (10-7, 2-2 Ivy) started (20.8 points per game) and rebounding If Harvard wins the national title, the well and twice dominated Dartmouth, (10 boards per game). Reka Cserny ’05 next goal for some of the team, Chu and but lost games to Ivy powers Princeton has contributed 13.6 points per game. Ruggiero included, may well be the World (67-61) and Pennsylvania (75-59). Se- Championships in Beijing. Farther down niors Patrick Harvey and Brady Mer- Men’s Hockey the road, the two longtime friends may chant led Crimson scoring, averaging At midseason, the stickmen (13-5-2 become teammates again in 2006 in Tori- 16.7 and 14.7 points per game, respec- overall, 12-3-0 ECAC) were tied with no, Italy, where an Olympic gold medal tively. Cornell atop the ECAC. The Crimson would make a nice graduation present for overpowered Yale twice, 6-3 and 6-2, Chu. After her own graduation next year, Women’s Basketball were upset 2-1 by lowly Princeton, but Ruggiero plans to play hockey overseas for Looking to repeat as Ivy champions, the took out Brown, 3-1, after exams. Tim a while, but once the next Olympics have netwomen (12-4, 4-0 Ivy) crushed Pettit ’04 led the ECAC in scoring with ended, she wryly observes, “I’ll just be a Princeton, 78-42, and dispatched 2001 9 goals and 17 assists. 26-year-old without a job.” craig lambert

78 March - April 2003