Brion O’Connor WOMEN’S LEAGUE Director of Public Relations Hockey East Association Phone: (781) 245-2122 PRESS Fax: (781) 245-2492 [email protected] RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MARCH 2, 2007 HAT TRICK FOR SECOND-SEED BC Stack takes top player, rookie; Mutch is top coach Boston College pulled off the same awards hat trick that the University of New Hampshire netted last year, sweeping the three major individual awards acknowledging the season’s top player, rookie and coach. BC’s freshman sensation Kelli Stack had a torrid second half the season, ringing up 34 points to outdistance teammate and classmate Allie Thunstrom (31 points), and claimed the honor of TPS Hockey Player of the Year. That accomplishment almost guaranteed Stack the league’s “daily double,” as she also won the Mission Rookie of the Year Award. Thunstrum, who also finished second in the Rookie of the Year balloting, joins Stack on the Mission All-Rookie Team as unanimous selections. BC Head Coach Tom Mutch earned CCM Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Eagles to a sparkling 23-8-2 overall mark (15-6-0 record in league play including key wins over nationally ranked opponents New Hampshire and Harvard. The Eagles’ success included a Beanpot championship, and second seed in the WHEA Championships. The ITECH Three Stars Award winner, identifying the best collection of single-game performances this season, goes to UNH dynamo Sam Faber, last year’s Rookie of the Year and WHEA tournament MVP. The sophomore finished the season with 28 points in league play (despite missing four WHEA games), and led the league in assists with 21. Boston College junior Deb Spillane will be presented with the Sportsmanship Award, breaking a Providence College strangle- hold on the award after Karen Thatcher won it for the past three years. UNH netminder Melissa Bourdon will finish her remark- able career guarding the Wildcats’ cage by winning her fourth consecutive Goaltending Champion award. She finished with a 1.23 goals-against-average and .919 save percentage in league play, and also owns the NCAA mark for wins with 84. TPS Hockey Player of the Year Hockey East Scoring Champion Kelli Stack, Boston College Kelli Stack, Boston College (34 points) (Fr. F; Brooklyn Heights, OH) (Fr. F; Brooklyn Heights, OH) Runner-up: Allie Thunstrum, BC Runner-up: Allie Thunstrom, BC (31 points) ITECH Goaltending Champion Melissa Bourdon, New Hampshire (1.23 GAA) (Sr. G; Ile Bizard, QC) Runners-up: Molly Schaus, BC(1.87 GAA) Melissa Haber, BU (1.87 GAA) Mission Rookie of the Year Kelli Stack, Boston College (Fr. F; Brooklyn Heights, OH) Runner-up: Allie Thunstrom, BC ITECH “Three Stars” Award Sam Faber, New Hampshire (So. F; Mount Sinai, NY) Runners-up: CCM Coach of the Year Allie Thunstrom, Boston College Tom Mutch, Boston College Brittany Wilson, Connecticut Runner-up: Brian McCloskey, New Hampshire Sportsmanship Award Deb Spillane, Boston College (Jr. F; Franklin, MA) Runner-up: Natalie Vibert, Connecticut BOSTON COLLEGE • BOSTON UNIVERSITY • UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT • UNIVERSITY OF MAINE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE • NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY • PROVIDENCE COLLEGE • UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT Brion O’Connor WOMEN’S LEAGUE Director of Public Relations Hockey East Association Phone: (781) 245-2122 PRESS Fax: (781) 245-2492 [email protected] RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MARCH 2, 2007 TOP TEAMS DOMINATE ALL-STAR SQUADS Trio of BC freshmen highlight All-Star selections Three of the league’s four semifinalists dominated the All-Star selections this season, as Boston College, UNH and Con- necticut combined to garner 12 of the 13 spots on the two squads. BC led the way with five selections, including First-Teamers Kelli Stack and Allie Thunstrom. Top-ranked UNH had four selections and 4th-seed UConn had three, while the sole remaining spot went to 3rd-seed Providence and its exceptional defender, Kristin Gigliotti. BC freshmen Kelli Stack and Allie Thunstrom represented a youth movement for the First Team, which also saw the emergence of UConn sophomore netminder Brittany Wilson. Veterans Gigliotti, Martine Garland of UNH and Natalie Vibert of UConn patrol the First Team’s blueline, while the 2005-06 Rookie of the Year, UNH’s Sam Faber, completes the forward corps. Another freshman, BC’s Molly Schaus, starts in net for the Second Team, joined by veteran All-Stars Maggie Taverna of BC and Jennifer Hitchcock of UNH, as well as Jaclyn Hawkins of UConn, Kacey Bellamy of UNH, and Becky Zavisza of BC. Faber, Taverna and Zavisza all garnered All-Rookie honors last year. BC’s Stack and Thunstrom were two of four unanimous selections on the forward-dominated Mission All-Rookie Team, alongside BC goaltender Molly Schaus and Northeastern forward Chelsey Jones. UNH’s Kelly Paton and UConn’s Dominique Thibault rounded out the rookie squad. 2006-07 Hockey East All-Stars HOCKEY EAST ALL-STARS First Team Position Second Team Brittany Wilson, Connecticut Goaltender Molly Schaus, Boston College (SO; Nepean, ON) (FR; Natick, MA) Kristin Gigliotti, Providence College 2 Defense Kacey Bellamy, New Hampshire (SR; Sauquoit, NY) (SO; Westfield, MA) Martine Garland, New Hampshire 1 Defense Maggie Taverna, Boston College 2 (JR; Toronto, ON) (SO; Howell, NJ) Natalie Vibert, Connecticut 4 Defense (SR; Thunder Bay, ON) Kelli Stack, Boston College * Forward Jennifer Hitchcock, New Hampshire 1 (FR; Brooklyn Heights, OH) (JR; LaSalle, ON) Allie Thunstrom, Boston College * Forward Becky Zavisza, Boston College (FR; Maplewood, MN) (SO; Suffield, CT) Sam Faber, New Hampshire Forward Jaclyn Hawkins, Connecticut 3 (SO; Mt. Sinai, NY) (JR; Manotick, ON) Honorable Mention All-Stars – Goaltender: Jana Bugden (PC) Defensemen: Erin Normore (PC), Kelly Law (Maine) 1, 3 2006-07 Mission All-Rookie Team Forwards: Meghan Fardelmann (BC), Chelsey Molly Schaus, BC, Goaltender (Natick MA) * Jones (NU), and Sonny Watrous (PC) 2 Kelli Stack, BC, Forward (Brooklyn Heights, OH) * Allie Thunstrom, BC, Forward (Maplewood, MN) * * – unanimous choice Chelsey Jones, NU, Forward (Lake Elmo, MN) * 1 – First Team All-Star in 2005-06 Kelly Paton, UNH, Forward (Woodstock, ON) 2 – Second Team All-Star in 2005-06 Dominique Thibault, UConn, Forward (L’Orignal, ON) 3 – Second Team All-Star in 2004-05 4 – First Team All-Star in 2004-05 * unanimous selection BOSTON COLLEGE • BOSTON UNIVERSITY • UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT • UNIVERSITY OF MAINE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE • NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY • PROVIDENCE COLLEGE • UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT.