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Women's hockey aims high
Confidence. That's what it's all about for the SCSU women's hockey team as they begin their 2003-2004 campaign. Despite winning 11 games last season, the Huskies are holding their heads high and planning on finishing higher in the conference than what WCHA hockey coaches figure. Their prediction is dead last.
"Coming into any season, you want to look at it as anything is possible," Huskies head coach Jason Lesteberg said. "Our minimum goal is to make the Final Five, but our maximum goal is see what we can do. Maybe we're aiming a little bit high, but to get there you have to aim there."
As far as rankings go, Lesteberg sees it as a challenge to his players to step up and prove their critics wrong.
"Some people would look at that and say 'Oh, jeez you're ranked last�'" Lesteberg said. "But for me, that's fine. We have a we-against-the world attitude as it is and that's what we want, so our players come to battle every game. I think we have a lot of capability to surprise some people this year. It's up to (our players) to come out, show up and compete every day."
Senior captain Kobi Kawamoto believes that the team is out to exceed expectations that critics have for the Huskies this year.
"This year is going to be awesome," Kawamoto said. "We're going to surprise a lot of people this year, I can say that much. It's good to be the underdog sometimes."
Senior defender and co-captain Leanne Perrin believes that 2003-2004 will be great.
"The outlook this season looks good," Perrin said. "We have a great team and some great chemistry."
The Players
The Huskies return their top four points leaders in senior Roxy Stang (17 points), juniors Carrie Holldorf (25 points) and Melanie Pudsey (21 points) and sophomore Ashley Stewart (19 points).
"Our top four scoring returns are all forwards, so that's definitely good for us," Lesteberg said. "As a team last year we tabulated 183 points last year, we only lost 37 of those points (to graduation). So we have some leadership that can get the puck in the net."
Stang holds the team record in career points and career goals scored. Lesteberg believes that Stang will be back at the level she was at in her freshman and sophomore seasons, when she had a total of 69 points.
"Roxy had a great summer," Lesteberg said. "I think you'll see the Roxy Stang of old. She had a tough year last year and I think she's ready to have a year like she did the two pervious seasons."
Perrin believes also that Stang's senior year will be stellar on the ice.
"She's looking pretty good and I think she'll rebound from the year she had last year," Perrin said.
Also returning for their sophomore years and a combined 21 points in last season are Krista Simonson, Katie Hauge and Calise Johnson. Newcomers on the front lines include Ashley Andrews (Lakeville, Minn.), Jackie Jensen (Madison, Wis.), Bobbie Anderson (Whitecourt, Alberta) and Lindsay Ball (Victoria, B.C.). Andrews also has prior experience with the Minnesota Thoroughbreds. Kawamoto believes there's a lot of talent in this year's crop of freshmen and Jensen in particular.
"Jackie is a natural goal scorer," Kawamoto said. "By her senior year, she's going to have a lot of awards stacked up behind her."
Kawamoto and Perrin both believe that Anderson and Pudsey are going to be two huge weapons this season.
"Bobbie is a great all-around player," Kawamoto said.
"Pudsey has taken on a bigger role now and more leadership, which is good to see that someone is stepping up."
Kawamoto and Perrin and junior defender Tina Ciraulo return as the 2003-2004 captains.
At the blue line, the Huskies return the trio of captains and also sophomores Kelly Stewart (12 points) and Randie Jelinski (three points). A key recruit for the '03-'04 season on defense is five-foot-five Calgary native Tricia Fast.
"We return five of six (from last season) so we have a lot of experience back on the blue line," Lesteberg said. "We've got a lot of experience and a lot of leadership back there."
Perrin believes the defense looks good and states that they should do very well this season.
"We have a solid base," Perrin said. "We all work really well together, and we all can play the left or right side so we're looking pretty solid this year."
The Huskies downfall looks to be at the goaltender position. SCSU lost main starting goaltender Laura Gieselman to graduation and returns Senior Ellen Brinkman and sophomore Brie Anderson. Brinkman saw limited time last year with a total of 72 minutes the entire 2002 season. She finished with a goals against average of 6.63 and had an 0-1 record. Anderson saw close to 640 minutes of ice time last season accumulating and 6.47 GAA and four wins on the year.
Also added to the roster is freshman Lauri St. Jacques of Sturgeon Fall, Ont. Jacques spent time with the North York Jr. Areos.
"I think that's our biggest question mark of whose going to step up (as starter)," Lesteberg said. "We'll keep evaluating them and see whom we decide to play from there."
New coach
Beginning his first year with the Huskies along with second-year head coach Lesteberg and fifth year assistant coach David Prokop is Jeff 'Goose' Giesen . He is a former assistant coach at St. John's University in Collegeville.
His primary duties will be to work with the Huskies' defensive players, the penalty-killing unit and other areas. Giesen was an assistant coach at St. John's University from 1992-98 and has been an associate head coach at SJU since 1998. The Johnnies prospered in Giesen's time, winning Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference titles in 1996, 1997 and 2003, as well as playoff titles and NCAA Division III national tournament appearances in 1996, 1997, 2001 and 2003.
"He brings 11-plus years of being at St. John's. He's been in the game a long time," Lesteberg said. "He's going to help primarily with the defense, an area that needs development for us."
Lesteberg also stated that one of the best things about Giesen is that he's an all-around good person to have around. Something that Lesteberg believes is a good thing to have around for his players,
"I've known him for a number of years," Lesteberg said, who owns a record of 36-49-9 as a head coach with three different teams. He's a great guy, he molds well with our locker room and office."
Kawamoto and Perrin can't begin to describe how much Giesen is helping the squad.
"We could go on forever about him," the teammates said.
"We've learned a lot already in three weeks. He's got everything as a coach. We want to impress him and prove that were good enough to play here."
WCHA
The always rugged Western Collegiate Hockey Association looks to be just that again this season: rugged. National women's hockey powerhouse and 2003 NCAA women's Frozen Four champion for the third straight year, the University of Minnesota-Duluth is ranked as the number one team in the nation. Not surprisingly, their counterparts, the University of Minnesota grabs the third place ranking in the polls. The University of Wisconsin enters the polls at the number six spot.
"A lot of teams graduated their first big recruiting class this past season," Lesteberg said. "So I think there's going to be a lot more parody within the league."
Virtually every school in the conference lost a player that meant something to that team. Bemidji State, UMD and Wisconsin are just a few of those schools.
"Wisconsin lost Jackie McMillian who played almost every game for them the last four years. Bemidji and UMD both lost a lot of talent too, so it's going to be interesting," Lesteberg said. "There's going to be new faces in the league this year. There's no question about that."
So can the Huskies pull out a winning season, their first since finishing 17-16-2 three seasons ago? Only time will tell.
"Honestly, people ranking us last (in the conference) are going to be surprised," Kawamoto said. "Maybe that's good for us. Hopefully, we'll make people realize that they shouldn't take us lightly because of our history."
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