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Volume CXXXII, Number 19 |
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Hockey's dream season ends in Frozen Four of NCAAs
REBEKAH METZLER
STAFF WRITER
After months of domination and triumph, the Bowdoin Women's Ice Hockey Team ended its prolific season as one of the top three teams in the country.
Goalie Natalie Morgan '06 said, "It takes a lot of determination and commitment to have gotten where we did. As a freshman, I find myself extremely lucky to have been part of this team." Indeed, though they picked up two losses near the end of the ride, this group of Bears put together an impressive record of 23-2-3.
After defeating in-state rival Colby College 5-0 in the NESCAC semifinals, Bowdoin lost to Middlebury 4-0 in the finals. It was a game of unlucky bounces and great play in goal for Katie Madouras of Middlebury.
Determined to keep their season alive and prove to Middlebury its true dominance, Bowdoin faced the Panthers just a week later in the first round of the NCAA tournament and dealt them a 3-0 loss-a slap in the face of the Panther and their traveling dancing cheerleader.
Blasting a wrist shot into the goal for Bowdoin was Britney Carr '04 whose eventual game-winner in the first period sent a message to Middlebury that the Bears had come to play. Gillian McDonald '04 and Kirsti Anderson '05 added the final two goals to the Polar Bear tally, and Emily McKissock '03 turned away 24 shots for the shutout.
Three-time NESCAC Player of the Week, NCAA All-Tournament selection (Bowdoin's sole representative), fifth in NESCAC in points and assists, second in game-winning goals in the NESCAC, and third grade Spelling Bee champ (this accolade has yet to be verified) Marissa O'Neil '05 said, "I feel in the first [Middlebury] game we didn't catch too many breaks and were not used to being down, so it was difficult for us to catch up. Going into the NCAA quarterfinals, we knew that they weren't going to come to our house and win again. We realized that we couldn't wait for things to happen against such a strong team and that we had to make them happen-that's what we did."
McKissock added, "Our high point was obviously the last Middlebury game. We played with so much heart to come back from the 4-0 loss-that kind of turn around is incredible. Regardless of the outcome of the season, that was an impressive feat for the team."
McKissock capped off her stellar career at Bowdoin with her name first on virtually every college goaltending title. Although all the numbers are not in yet, she looks to have the best career save percentage, best career goals against average, most minutes played in a season, most minutes played in a career, most wins in a season, most wins in a career, most shutouts in a season, and most shutouts in a career. Named as a First-Team All-American this year, even McKissock's impressive statistics fail to reflect the determination and domination that she has displayed for the team in her four years of play.
Following the emotional Elite Eight triumph over Middlebury, the Bears traveled to Elmira to face Manhattanville in the Final Four. Though Bowdoin lost by a score of 4-1, the Bears held their heads high as their season officially ended. McKissock made 34 saves in the defeat, and senior Alyson Lizotte scored the final goal of her career.
In the consolation match the next day, Bowdoin defeated Wisconsin-River Falls 4-2. Said Anderson, "We don't need NCAA watches or first place trophies to know that we were the best in the country this year.
Any team can win on any given day, and unfortunately it was Manhattanville's luck to pull off a win against us. I'm just glad we were able to finish our season with a really strong win against River Falls."
McKissock said, "The Manhattanville game was a matter of size and strength I think-things we have been working on a lot, but are not the only focus of our program."
Scoring for the Polar Bears against Wisconsin-River Falls were O'Neil, Leah McClure '03, Nicki Young '06, and McDonald. Said McDonald, "This year was another great year. It truly is magical and such an honor to represent your school at the Final Four. When you are there you feel an enormous amount of pride for your school and your teammates. The NCAA really does put on a great show, and they deserve a huge round of applause."
First Team All-American Beth Muir '03 said of the experience, "It was great to be there again, and it always feels good to win the last game of the season and for some of us our careers!"
Looking back on her first two seasons in the program, O'Neil said, "The past two years we look back on these experiences, and they have been a lot of fun, but our level of play didn't show the hard work we put in all year, so I would say when you are playing at that level you want to make sure you don't have any regrets when its all over."
Two-time First-Team All-American Shelly Chessie '03 succinctly added her advice to future teams competing for a national championship: "Don't lose."
As the Bears say "au revoir" to McKissock, Muir, Chessie, Lizotte, McClure, Ba Lanoue, Francesca "Frankie" Klucevsek-Whalen, and Kirsti Anderson, those remaining look forward to continuing to build onto the legacy left behind by these amazing players.
All the supporters of this year's team offer up a huge thank you to the team and, reciprocally, the team would like to thank all the loyal parents and fans for their contributions and faithfulness throughout the successful season.
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