FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE THREE MORE WCHA PLAYERS SELECTED IN 2018 NWHL DRAFT Ohio State’s Lauren Boyle, Wisconsin’s Emily Clark and Minnesota’s Nicole Schammel all selected on the draft’s second and final day BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Dec. 20, 2018 – Three more women’s Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) seniors heard their names called on the second and final day of the 2018 National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) Draft, giving the league six of the 25 players selected overall. Ohio State University blueliner Lauren Boyle was chosen by the Minnesota Whitecaps with their third-round pick (14th overall), University of Wisconsin forward Emily Clark was the next selection, tabbed by the Boston Pride (15th overall) and University of Minnesota senior Nicole Schammel was the fifth-round choice of the Buffalo Beauts (23rd overall). “We are again ecstatic for Lauren, Emily and Nicole – and all of our deserving WCHA student-athletes – to have a chance at pursuing their professional hockey dreams,” said WCHA Vice President and Women’s League Commissioner Katie Million. “We applaud all six WCHA women chosen in the 2018 NWHL Draft, along with their coaches and programs, for the incredible dedication to developing their games and becoming professional draft picks. We look forward to watching them excel in the second half of the 2018- 19 college season and beyond!” Boyle, a native of Los Gatos, Calif. who played her prep hockey at Eden Prairie (Minn.) High School, has been a key part of Ohio State’s resurgence. A member of the 2015-16 WCHA All-Rookie Team, she has accumulated 61 points (15 goals and 46 assists) in 125 collegiate games. Last season, Boyle scored the game-winning goal at Boston College in the NCAA quarterfinals, sending OSU to the 2018 Frozen Four in its first-ever tournament appearance. She enters the second half of the 2018-19 season with a plus-7 rating for the nationally eighth-ranked Buckeyes. Clark, a redshirt-senior from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, helped Canada earn silver at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. A two-time All-WCHA selection, Clark has 13 points (six goals and seven assists) in 13 games this season and, after returning from injury, enters the second half on a three- game point streak for the top-ranked Badgers. The two-way center has accumulated 131 career points in 126 collegiate games, scoring 62 goals with 69 assists for UW. Schammel, a Red Wing, Minn. native, has developed into the leading scorer for the second-ranked Gophers. A redshirt-senior who spent her freshman year at Minnesota State University, Schammel has six goals and 19 assists this season, entering the second half tied for second in the WCHA with 25 points. After a career-best 32 point campaign at Minnesota in 2017-18, Schammel is closing in on the century mark with 91 collegiate points (40 goals and 51 assists in 133 games). The two-day 2018 NWHL Draft saw six WCHA student-athletes drafted by four teams. In addition to Boyle, the Minnesota Whitecaps also selected the Gophers’ Kelly Pannek (first round, fourth overall pick) and the University of Wisconsin’s Sophia Shaver (second round, ninth overall). The Metropolitan Riveters nabbed the Badgers’ Annie Pankowski with the first overall pick of the draft. - MORE - About the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) The Women’s League of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association is celebrating 20 Years of Excellence during 2018-19 anniversary season. The nation’s premier women’s hockey conference, WCHA member institutions have won a record 16 national championships since the league’s inception in 1999 (including 15 of a possible 18 NCAA titles), while producing seven Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winners, 98 All- Americans and numerous Olympic and national team members. The seven-team, NCAA Division 1 conference consists of: Bemidji State University (Beavers), the University of Minnesota (Golden Gophers), the University of Minnesota Duluth (Bulldogs), Minnesota State University (Mavericks), Ohio State University (Buckeyes), St. Cloud State University (Huskies) and the University of Wisconsin (Badgers). For more information, visit www.wcha.com. MEDIA CONTACT MORE INFORMATION Matt Hodson Website: wcha.com Associate Commissioner, Marketing & Communications Twitter: @wcha_whockey E: [email protected] Instagram: @wcha_whockey O: 952.681.7668 Facebook: facebook.com/wchawomenshockey M: 612.801.2808 Watch the WCHA on FloHockey.tv - WCHA - .