Thursday, February 28, 2013

CHAmpionship Drive

Penn State's Hannah Hoenshell will try to out-dangle RIT defenders Danielle Read (2) and Kristina Moss (4) this weekend in a CHA first round series at Frank Ritter Memorial Arena

What: NCAA Women (7-24-2, 1-17-2 College Hockey America) vs. RIT (14-15-5, 7-8-5 College Hockey America) in a best-of-three CHA tournament first-round series

Where: Frank Ritter Memorial Ice Arena, Henrietta, NY

When: Friday, March 1 at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, March 2 at 2:00 p.m., and (if necessary) Sunday, March 3 at 2:00 p.m.

Coverage: TYT live blogs (free), CHA video ($), RIT audio (free), RIT live stats (free) ,

All season long, this inaugural group of Nittany Lions has been pointed towards this moment.

With the NCAA tournament never really in play thanks to the CHA's - thankfully, now temporary - lack of an autobid (only Mercyhurst among league members has proven able to earn an at-large bid) the CHA tournament, which opens this weekend, has taken on the role of an end, both literally and figuratively, and not just a means to one.

That's been the recurring theme from Josh Brandwene all season, whenever he's been asked about his team's goals for this first NCAA season: improve every day, peak for CHAs, and anything can happen in a playoff setting. He's right, and his Nittany Lions will look to capitalize on that puncher's chance that always comes with great goaltending, likely from Nicole Paniccia this weekend, and grinding effort players like Birdie Shaw, Micayla Catanzariti and Shannon Yoxheimer (seriously, don't let the team highs of 14 goals, 16 assists and 30 points fool you, she's outstanding without the puck too). As has been the case all year, limiting the opponents' shot quality, if not volume, and capitalizing on the counterattack will be of paramount importance for a squad looking for a signature win to bookend the NCAA era-opening 5-3 victory at Vermont on October 6th.

One team that knows a little bit about playoff hockey is the Nittany Lions' opponent for the series, RIT. After all, the Tigers join defending CHA champ Robert Morris as the only teams able to claim the most recent edition of a major tournament - RIT won the ECAC West and the NCAA Division III national championship last season prior to elevating to DI this year.

Scott McDonald's charges are quite familiar to Penn State through four meetings this season. Notably, PSU chipped off one of their four league points from the Tigers back on October 26th at the Ice Pavilion. The Nittany Lions, behind Nicole Paniccia's 59 saves and first-period goals from Taylor Gross and Yoxheimer, nearly escaped with a 2-1 win before Tenecia Hiller's floater off of a turnover with 1:29 left in regulation forced a draw.

RIT won the other three games in the season series, the last pair coming just two weekends ago at Ritter Arena, in games that became rather physical. Two notable incidents in that department took place during the Tigers' 4-0 win on February 16th. The first involved PSU junior Jenna Welch, who let fly with a sharp elbow to Erin Zach following the latter's late second period goal, drawing the ire of Jess Paton in reply. The other was a post-whistle battle between dangle queen Hannah Hoenshell and RIT's Danielle Read with 16 seconds left in the game.

The Tigers' starting goaltender, Ali Binnington, returned last weekend for their series at Mercyhurst after missing those PSU games with an upper body injury, so the sophomore with sparkling numbers (2.03 goals against average, 0.925 save percentage) is expected to be the last barrier to Penn State's offensive production. Elsewhere, Hiller and Kim Schlattman lead the senior-laden team with 14 goals each, while defender Kristina Moss and her wicked shot generates a lot of trouble from up high and Zach uses a good degree of jam to create additional problems from near the blue paint.

A Penn State upset would mean that the Nittany Lions are locked in to a semifinal against top seed Mercyhurst next Friday. The Lakers won the right to host the CHA semifinals and final by winning the CHA regular season crown for an incredible 11th straight year, thanks to a 17-3-0 league record.


Elsewhere in the CHA tournament this weekend, second-year NCAA program Lindenwood will visit defending champion Robert Morris in the other first-round series, one that features teams trending in opposite directions.

Lindenwood, after beginning their time in DI with a 4-40-1 record in their first 45 games against other DI teams, has gone 5-1-2 since January 26th, obviously an incredible turn in fortune (one that raises the intriguing possibility of a similar tipping point for Penn State next season). Included in the month-long hot streak: wins over every CHA opponent except Mercyhurst, including 2-1 in overtime over Syracuse on Tuesday and a home sweep of RMU two weeks ago, which will certainly have the Colonials salty.

Nicole Hensley, a freshman goaltender and a former teammate of PSU defender Jeanette Bateman with the Colorado Select program, has been in the middle of the surge, as she faces more than 43.5 shots per 60 minutes but only allows 3.59 of them through. The offensively-challenged Lions have found enough to win in recent weeks, hitting that magic number of three goals five times during their current run after doing it just four times all season previous to that. LU's top line of Alison Wickenheiser, Alyssa West and Allysson Arcibal accounts for nearly half of the Lions' goal scoring - 28 of the team's 60 this season.

RMU came into this season as something resembling CHA co-favorites with Mercyhurst, and things started off well enough through December 8th, when the Colonials completed a sweep of the Lakers to climb to 9-3-2 overall and 5-1-0 in the CHA. Since then though, they're just 4-11-1 overall, including 2-11-1 prior to the team's home sweep of Penn State last weekend. The magnitude of the skid is baffling, given the talent level in Moon Township, including goaltender Kristen DiCiocco, the new program wins leader, as well as dynamic defender Jamie Joslin and waves of quality forwards like Rebecca Vint, Kristen Richards, Kelsey Thomas and Thea Imbrogno. Without a doubt, four Colonials wins over the next two weekends would redeem a disappointing season, although they'll have to start with two against a team that took the season series three games to one.

After both the Penn State-RIT and Robert Morris-Lindenwood series are decided, the two winners will head to the Mercyhurst Ice Center next weekend, with the lowest-surviving seed playing the hosts (obviously and as mentioned, that will be PSU, should the Nittany Lions advance), while second-seeded Syracuse will play the other first-round winner in the other semifinal. The winners of the single-elimination semifinal will then meet for the league tournament title.

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Commit Cycle: February 27 (Women)

It's that horrible time of year again, when the primary hockey season winds down and we start to remove players from the Commit Cycle posts, before pausing the series for the summer once they're all gone. Playing hockey at a high level is a year-round commitment of course, but information from all of the camps, showcases and leagues during the "offseason" isn't gained steadily enough to maintain a regular post (in cases where it is available, it will still be passed along, of course).

Here are the removed players and how their seasons concluded. As always, check W Current Commitments for full stats.
  • Laura Bowman, Amy Petersen and Hannah Ehresmann (Minnetonka High School) won a third consecutive Minnesota AA state title following a 21-4-0 regular season, a Lake Conference championship, and a successful run through the Section 6AA tournament. While Ehresmann was the backup goalie for the sectional and state tournaments after getting half of the starts during the regular season, Bowman and Petersen were - as they've been throughout their careers - the centerpieces of the Skippers' offense. Both were named to the state all-tournament team and finish their careers as the top two scorers in Skippers history. Bowman was also named a Minnesota Ms. Hockey semifinalist.
  • Sarah Nielsen (Edina High School) fell short of the state tournament and a shot at redemption for losses to Minnetonka (2011's championship game) and Paige Jahnke's Roseville (2012's semifinals) by losing 3-1 to Eden Prairie in the Section 2AA finals. The Hornets went 13-7-5 in the regular season, with Nielsen leading the team in assists.
  • Christi Vetter (Lakeville North High School), after winning the South Suburban Conference co-championship and the Section 1AA tournament, finished third at states. The Panthers were eliminated by Minnetonka in a six-overtime semifinal that stands as the longest game in the history of the tournament, despite Vetter's two goals that forced overtime. Vetter, who helped the Panthers to a 17-6-2 regular season with a team-high 18 tallies, also scored an overtime goal in the state quarterfinals and joined future teammates Petersen and Bowman on the all-tournament team.

Remi Martin

Defender
Colorado Springs Tigers 19U/Foothills Flyers MM AA
5'6" // Littleton, CO
Class of 2014
DOB 7/15/1996




The Tigers won the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association's Tier II U19AA state championship over the weekend of February 15th-17th... Martin scored in an 8-0 romp over the Rocky Mountain Lynx to get things started and, following a 4-1 win over the MSGHL Rockstars, helped clinch the title with an assist on a game-winning power play goal in the second period of a 2-1 win over the Colorado Select... this past weekend, the Tigers won the Women's Association of Colorado Hockey (a league with U19 and ACHA women's teams) playoffs with a 2-0-2 record, although it does not appear as if Martin participated in the WACH tournament.



Daniela Paniccia

Goaltender
Oakville Hornets AA
5'3" // Oakville, ON
Class of 2015
DOB 1997




Date
Opponent
ScoreSAGASv%GAA 
2/14
vs. Oakville Hornets AA2
W 4-2
--
-
---
---
2/18
vs. Mississauga Chiefs
L 0-2
21
2
0.905
2.00
2/21
vs. Etobicoke Dolphins
W 2-1
--
-
---
---
2/22
vs. Burlington Barracudas
W 6-1
19
1
0.947
1.00
2/24
vs. Mississauga Chiefs
W 2-0
--
-
---
---

The Hornets are in the midst of the Ontario Women's Hockey Association playdowns and are presently 2-1-0 in round robin division K (only the games on the 18th, 22nd and 24th are counted on that record)... that's good for third place - bad news when only two teams will advance from the division, but okay news when the teams ahead of the Hornets have played five and six of the eight division games already - this segment of the tournament wraps up on March 10th... meanwhile, Oakville is also progressing through the Lower Lakes Female Hockey League Central Division playoffs, defeating their worse half on the 14th to clinch a first-round best-of-three, followed by a win over Etobicoke in the second round to get that best-of-three division semifinal off to a good start... a division championship would lead to the LLFHL's overall championship weekend March 22nd through 24th.



Kelly Seward

Defender
Nichols School/Buffalo Bisons 19U
5'9" // Williamsville, NY
Class of 2013
DOB 6/7/1995




For the second consecutive year, Nichols destroyed the North American Prep Hockey Association en route to regular season and playoff titles... this year, they plowed the NAPHA regular season with a 15-0-1 record, the only blemish a 3-3 tie with Ridley College on January 4th (worth noting, since Seward plays defense: the Vikings only allowed 16 goals in those 16 games)... Nichols took full advantage of their top seed by winning the NAPHA playoff title as well, by blasting Trinity 10-1 in the quarterfinals, Rothesay Netherwood 6-2 in the semifinals, and Ridley 4-1 in the championship game... Nichols also finished on top of their other league - the Conference of Independent Schools Athletic Association - with an 11-2-2 regular season record... the Vikings easily downed Ridley 4-0 in the CISAA semifinals on February 20th and are presently involved in a best-of-three championship series with Appleby College... Nichols took game one 3-1, game two is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, with a possible game three on Friday.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Fake Big Ten Standings III

Michigan claimed the first and only Fake Big Ten title with a 4-0-0 stretch run, including a win over archrival Michigan State at Detroit's Joe Louis Arena on February 2nd. Photo: MGoBlue.com

Michigan probably won't win any actual trophies this season, but they will always be able to claim a title in the only season of the Fake Big Ten, 2012-2013. The Wolverines used a late-season 4-0-0 surge against Michigan State and Ohio State to edge out Minnesota, whose loss to Wisconsin on February 17th in the outdoor Hockey City Classic at Chicago's Soldier Field proved fatal.

Unfortunately for the maize-and-blue, they don't get an autobid to the NCAA tournament for winning the Fake Big Ten - in that sense, the Gophers get the last laugh as the only future Big Tenner likely to earn the right to play for a (real) national championship.

Penn State finished third, a result just as stunning as the 3-2 overtime win at Wisconsin Monday in the final game of the season for both the Nittany Lions and the Fake Big Ten that clinched a top-half placement (only NCAA Division I games are counted in PSU's overall numbers, by the way). The Badgers were Holstromed into fourth, while Ohio State dropped to fifth after being swept by Michigan over the weekend. Michigan State... well, at least this doesn't count for anything.

Obviously, this isn't a perfect way to look at things by any stretch of the imagination, although generally, teams did grab a decent sample of games against future Big Ten rivals this season. Minnesota-Wisconsin and Michigan-Michigan State-Ohio State games are ensured by present conference arrangements, of course. However MSU, to their credit, also scheduled Penn State and Minnesota, only missing Wisconsin. Independent PSU worked in those games against the Spartans, as well as the Buckeyes and Badgers. OSU played three of the five, with CCHA opponent Michigan joining the Nittany Lions and Spartans. Minnesota (Wisconsin, Michigan), Michigan (Michigan State, Ohio State) and Wisconsin (Minnesota, Penn State) hit two.

Here are the final standings:

Conference
Overall
W-L-T
Pts.Pct.GF-GAW-L-TGF-GA
Michigan
6-1-0
12
0.857
31-20
12-18-2
99-115
Minnesota
4-1-1
9
0.750
22-10
21-6-5
117-64
Penn State
3-2-0
6
0.600
14-18
11-12-0
64-72
Wisconsin
2-3-1
5
0.417
15-13
14-11-7
75-65
Ohio State
2-3-0
4
0.400
14-17
13-14-7
81-82
Michigan State
2-9-0
4
0.182
24-42
10-21-3
72-94

Conference Results

October 12: Michigan State 1 at Minnesota 5 [box score]
October 13: Michigan State 1 at Minnesota 7 [box score]
November 9: Michigan State 1 at Michigan 5 [box score]
November 10: Michigan 2 at Michigan State 7 [box score]
November 16: Wisconsin 2 at Minnesota 2 [box score]
November 17: Wisconsin 1 at Minnesota 3 [box score]
November 30: Ohio State 1 at Michigan State 0 [box score]
December 1: Ohio State 3 at Michigan State 1 [box score]
December 29: Penn State 5 vs. Ohio State 4 (Pittsburgh, PA) [box score]
December 30: Michigan State 2 vs. Michigan 5 (Detroit, MI) [box score]
January 25: Penn State 3 at Michigan State 5 [box score]
January 26: Penn State 3 at Michigan State 2 [box score]
February 1: Michigan State 2 at Michigan 3 [box score]
February 2: Michigan State 2 vs. Michigan 5 (Detroit, MI) [box score]
February 15: Minnesota 3 at Wisconsin 2 [box score]
February 17: Minnesota 2 vs. Wisconsin 3 (Chicago, IL) [box score]
February 22: Michigan 5 at Ohio State 3 [box score]
February 23: Michigan 6 at Ohio State 3 [box score]
February 24: Penn State 0 at Wisconsin 5 [box score]
February 25: Penn State 3 at Wisconsin 2 (OT) [box score]

Monday, February 25, 2013

M: Penn State 3 at Wisconsin 2 (OT)



So, let's reset.

Penn State, a first-year NCAA Division I program featuring eight members who arrived in Happy Valley before Terry Pegula's donation announcement, went into the Kohl Center Monday night to play a nationally-televised game on Big Ten Network against Wisconsin. The Badgers, after a slow start to their season, had gone 13-3-5 since December 1st to climb to 16th in this week's USCHO poll and - more importantly - 19th in the pairwise rankings. In front of 9,078 hostile fans, the Nittany Lions rallied from a two-goal third-period deficit to win 3-2 in overtime and, despite having nothing tangible to play for themselves in their final game of the season, effectively end historic power Wisconsin's chances of receiving at at-large bid to the NCAA tournament.

Did I get that right? Unreal. This offseason is going to take forever.

For the record, Penn State finishes:
  • 19-16-0 in all games, including ACHA opponents and the U.S. National Team Development Program Under-18 team
  • 13-14-0 in NCAA games, which includes Division I and Division III
  • 11-12-0 against DI
  • 4-4-0 against major conference DI programs, including the ECAC's Union (0-2-0), the CCHA's Ohio State (1-0-0) and Michigan State (1-1-0), Hockey East's Vermont (1-0-0) and the WCHA's Wisconsin (1-1-0)
  • 3-2-0 against teams that will join PSU in the Big Ten next season - Ohio State, Michigan State and Wisconsin being the opponents, of course
Less than one year ago, we were mourning a loss to Oakland in the ACHA national tournament and the championship-free death of the Icers.

More thoughts when I'm able to express them coherently, of course. For now, here is the GoPSUSports.com recap, with what was one of the more fun live blogs I've ever done at the bottom.


Junior forward Taylor Holstrom (Yorba Linda, Calif.) scored the game-winning goal with 34 seconds left in overtime as the Penn State men's hockey team erased a 2-0 deficit in a 3-2 overtime victory against No. 16 Wisconsin in its season finale at the Kohl Center Monday night.

The Nittany Lions, who defeated a ranked opponent for the first time and improved to 3-2-0 against future Big Ten opponents, finished their inaugural NCAA Division I campaign at 13-14-0. Penn State, which also defeated Michigan State Jan. 26 in its only other appearance on BTN, improved to 10-2-0 when scoring a power-play goal.

Penn State found itself down 2-0 in the third period after goals from Mark Zengerle and Jason LaBate. The Nittany Lions then began to claw back beginning with Holstrom's marker. The forward tallied his first of the game at 6:48 of the period and, with 7:44 left in regulation, Casey Bailey (Anchorage, Alaska) tied the game with a power-play marker.

The stage was then set for Holstrom's heroics in the overtime frame. Bailey gloved a clearing attempt at the blue line and worked the puck toward the cage. After Max Gardiner's (Deephaven, Minn.) attempt was stopped, Holstrom fired the game-winner to the back of the cage.

Freshman netminder Matthew Skoff (McKees Rocks, Pa.) matched a career-high with 42 saves while Landon Peterson stopped 33 shots for the Badgers. Wisconsin outshot the Nittany Lions, 44-36, and went 0-for-4 on the power play. The Nittany Lions finished 1-for-4 with the man advantage.


Sunday, February 24, 2013

M: Penn State 0 at Wisconsin 5



Well, that sucked. No point in belaboring it - here's the UWBadgers.com recap:


One man's continued grind was a microcosm of a team's season-long battle.

"I've had opportunities this season," Tyler Barnes said. "I haven't been able to close on them.

"I knew to just keep working hard, bear down and eventually they'd start coming. We're really getting some quality chances and I think that's where it stems from."

Unable to finish out a number of close games and letting leads slip from them early on in the season, the Badgers--like Barnes-- have since learned to close things out.

Barnes and the Badgers left no doubt on Sunday night inside the Kohl Center, as the Eagan, Minn., native put together a four-point game and led Wisconsin (14-10-7, 11-7-7 WCHA) to a 5-0 shutout win over Penn State (12-14-0).

"I think more than anything if (Barnes) can have that feeling of confidence from the inside out and have that momentum going that could be a real valuable thing for him, and us," Wisconsin head coach Mike Eaves said.

The junior forward scored his eighth goal of the season and recorded three assists to bring his point total to 19 on the season. Meanwhile, the Badgers improved their record over the last 20 games to 13-3-4, after they started 1-7-3 through the first two months of the season.

The first period served as a bit of a feeling out period, as the game marked the first-ever meeting between Wisconsin and new NCAA Division I hockey program Penn State.

"You could feel the energy that they were playing with," Barnes said. "You have to give them credit for how they came out. I really could see this developing into something that becomes a good rivalry."

The two teams, each set to join the new Big Ten hockey conference next season, ended the first period recording six shots on goal.

"We just could've been better, just could've been sharper," John Ramage (St. Louis) said of the first period. "It starts with having a week off, but you always want more from yourself and the team and that's what we did in the second and third periods and showed what we are capable of.

"We really took it to them."

Over the final 40 minutes, the Badgers established a pace and tempo that forced the Nittany Lions back into their defensive zone and kept them there, racking up 45 shots and ending the night with a season-high 51 shots.

On senior night, team captain Ramage set the tone, scoring 1:26 into the second period, recording his sixth goal of the season and 12th of his career to give the Badgers a 1-0 lead. Barnes and Mark Zengerle (Rochester, N.Y.) each recorded assists.

Michael Mersch (Park Ridge, Ill.) ended a five-game scoring drought at the 16:05 mark of the second period, as he jabbed at a puck in front of net and that bounced past P.J. Musico in the Penn State net for the score. Barnes earned his second assist of the night, while Jake McCabe (Eau Claire, Wis.) was also credited with an assist.

It was the 17th goal on the season for Mersch, as the junior forward moved into a tie for fourth place in goal scoring in the WCHA. Going 2-for-7 against Penn State, Wisconsin's power play scored its 11th goal on the season, with Mersch accounting for six.

Nic Kerdiles extended Wisconsin's lead to 3-0 at the 10:20 mark of the third period, punching a loose puck past Musico. Barnes recorded his third assist on the night, while Zengerle dished out his second.

Barnes put the finishing touches on his four-point night in the third period at the 15:17 mark of the period. Having just checked out of the penalty box, Barnes was found wide open behind the defensive zone on a long feed from Keegan Meuer (Madison, Wis.). Barnes came down on the breakaway, deked Musico, then scored backhand to give Wisconsin a 4-0 lead.

Less than two minutes later, Brendan Woods (Yorba Linda, Calif.) scored his fourth goal of the season, on the power play, and put the finishing touches on Wisconsin's 5-0 shutout win at the 16:51 mark of the period.

Joel Rumpel (Swift Current, Saskatchewan) earned his seventh-career shutout, as the sophomore recorded 22 saves on the night to mark his eighth win of the season (8-7-4).

"It starts with [Joel Rumpel] on the back end, good goaltending and playing good defense as a whole and you build from there," Eaves said. "Tonight we were able to put together five goals, which we haven't done a lot this season.

"Other teams talk about us and say we're hard to play against. When we get into the playoffs, we play a pretty stingy game. We don't give up a lot and that's to our benefit."

Wisconsin looks to continue in building its postseason resume, finishing the series with Penn State tomorrow at the Kohl Center. Opening faceoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (CT). The game can be viewed live on BTN.

Tonka Trifecta

Amy Petersen (left) and Laura Bowman (right) starred in Minnetonka's third straight state title run

Penn State signees Laura Bowman and Amy Petersen, Minnetonka High School linemates and best friends since preschool, took their third straight Minnesota Class AA title with the Skippers Saturday night by defeating Hill-Murray 3-1. The victory completed a state tournament run of three wins in three days at St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center, and made Minnetonka the first girls program in Minnesota history to win three championships in a row (and still only the fourth when counting the boys).

Bowman and Petersen were both named to the all-tournament team - as one might expect of the primary catalysts of the champs' offense - and will join the Nittany Lions as freshmen next season. Once at PSU, they'll unite with current freshman Paige Jahnke, a member of the Roseville team Minnetonka defeated in the 2012 state title game. In 2011's final, the Skippers topped Edina, which featured forward Sarah Nielsen, a third member of the incoming class.

This time around, Petersen scored on a second-period breakaway, a goal that gave Tonka a 2-1 lead and held up as the winner. Bowman, a Minnesota Ms. Hockey semifinalist, added some insurance by burying a third-period feed from Petersen. Really, though, the story of the game was the fact that Minnetonka had enough left in the tank to down a tough Pioneers team, given what happened the night before.

It doesn't really need to be said, but the Skippers' 4-3 semifinal win over Lakeville North Friday night was one for the ages - a six-overtime epic that now stands as the longest game in the history of the Minnesota state high school tournament. It lasted a total of four hours, 15 minutes of real time and 113 minutes, 29 seconds of game time, ending at 1:04 a.m. central.

Both Bowman and Petersen had assists in regulation. Bowman's was relatively easy, as she handed it to Diana Draayer, the third member of the tandem's line, who took it most of the way herself to open the scoring just 29 seconds from the opening faceoff. On an early second period power play, Hannah Behounek made the score 3-1 Minnetonka after Petersen recovered a blocked shot and lasered it to her in the low slot.

After Lakeville North rallied to force extra hockey, the 62:29 of overtime (the periods alternated between eight and 17 minutes, which is how one gets to six of them that quickly) was full of the usual twists and turns by all accounts. The feed I was watching from the Minnesota television station broadcasting the games cut out late in regulation, so I'm going to rely on an outside description of the marathon's conclusion.
Amy Petersen was credited with the game winning goal at 4:29 of the sixth overtime after Laura Bowman’s shot deflected off her and past Lakeville North goaltender Cassie Alexander.

“It hit me right in the chest,” Petersen said.
The goal was actually controversial - at least according to some fans of the losing side, who argue that Petersen gloved the puck in and believe the game should have been stopped and resumed Saturday morning after the video reviewers grew tired and departed for the evening.

From left to right: Lakeville North's Christi Vetter and Minnetonka's Bowman, Petersen and Hannah Ehresmann at the Minnesota state tournament banquet Wednesday night

Regardless, the goal stands, and I'm sure Petersen isn't about to give it back. Unbelievably, it represented the second year in a row that she scored in overtime of the state semifinals to eliminate Lakeville North (she took care of things a lot more expeditiously last season, at 6:21 of the first overtime).

In Minnetonka's 4-0 quarterfinal win over heavy underdog Irondale on Thursday, Petersen had a goal and two assists. On the first assist, to help open the game's scoring, she sped down left wing, stopped cold in the circle, then demonstrated tremendous patience and vision in waiting for the backcheckers to overpursue before tossing the puck across to late-arriving Behounek, who scored from high in the right circle. The second involved her feeding a streaking Bowman, who split the defense before having her backhand try foiled. Draayer was there to clean up the rebound, however (Bowman, obviously, earned an assist on the play as well). Petersen later proved that she could shoot too, with a power play snipe from the left circle after walking in from the wall to cap the game's scoring.

Petersen finished the tournament with seven points on three goals and four assists, while Bowman scored once and added three assists.

The Skippers won the right to compete at the state tournament by sweeping through the Section 6AA tournament, which notably included a 3-2 comeback win over Benilde-St. Margaret's in the final. Tonka was down 2-0 into the last seven minutes of the game until goals from Behounek, Petersen and Bowman generated a startling turn of the contest's result. The two schools had battled for the top slot in the state polls all season long, so in winning their section, the Skippers also took care of a key statewide contender.

Minnetonka's team also includes goaltender Hannah Ehresmann, who is committed to head to Penn State in 2014. She backed up senior standout Sydney Rossman for the entirety of both the section and state tournaments, but was a key contributor during the regular season, going 11-1-0 with a 0.91 goals against average and a 0.939 save percentage. She'll have the chance to capture her own three-peat (she wasn't a member of the 2011 title-winning team) next season as the primary starter, although that might prove a tall order given the departures of Bowman, Petersen and others.

While she only ended up with a bronze medal - again - Vetter was fantastic

A fourth future Nittany Lion, forward Christi Vetter of Lakeville North, also had an outstanding tournament, joining Petersen and Bowman on the all-tournament team. She was on the losing end of that six-overtime tilt, although the outcome was hardly her fault. In fact, with all due respect to the victors, she was probably the best player on the ice in the game, scoring the Panthers' second and third goals in the middle period to complete the OT-forcing rally. One was a one-timer from the left circle that popped off of Rossman's blocker and in, while the equalizer was a power play deflection of Alexis Joyce's point blast.

The loss to Minnetonka was actually Vetter's second consecutive overtime game. In her quarterfinal matchup against North Wright County Thursday night, Vetter buried from the low slot at 3:42 of the fourth period on the power play, after a Heidi Winiecki pass from the goalline left of the cage somehow snaked through a cluster of players to find the big forward. While that was Vetter's only point of the game, she was a dominant presence down low throughout and helped cause goals without touching the puck, like when she delivered a perfect screen for Taylor Flaherty's second-period power play bomb.

Somehow, Lakeville North recovered from having their guts ripped out in overtime of the semifinals by Minnetonka - for the second year in a row, remember - to win their third place game, 3-2 over Eden Prairie. Without a doubt, Vetter would rather win Saturday's late game for the championship next year... and she'll have a chance as a senior with what should be a strong group of returning Panthers.

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Penn State-Robert Morris Photo Gallery II

Photos from Saturday afternoon's visit to Robert Morris for the contest between the Colonials and the Nittany Lion women. Click any photo to enlarge.

As I always like to do at a new and exciting place, here's the walking tour of Robert Morris' campus (which is a few miles from their hockey facility). First up, Joe Walton Stadium, the home of Paul Jones' RMU football team. An RMU-Detroit lacrosse game was warming up when I took this.


The Charles Sewall Center, apparently called The Chuck, is the venue for Colonials basketball, which took Villanova to overtime in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. The school is apparently pretty excited about hosting the (men's) Frozen Four in April as well.



The Nicholson Center is the student union - the bookstore, dining, student life offices and the office of admissions are located within.


At RMU, if it's not named after a former school president, rest assured that it's named after a founding father. The John Jay Center formerly housed the basketball team (until 1985, when The Chuck was built), but the 1,000-seat gym is now used for intramurals.


The Wheatley Center just opened this past September, and contains the School of Communications and Information Systems and the School of Business, as well as an art gallery and a screening room.


The Rudolph Family Gardens...


The Jefferson Center, which is primarily a health club and a lounge for veterans.


Madison Hall is pretty typical of RMU's student residences.


Why is RMU so good at hockey? Because somehow, the entire campus runs uphill. Legs feed the wolf, they say.


Back at 84 Lumber Arena, I decided to get artsy. Here are PSU's pucks waiting for warmup.


Speaking of "artsy," RMU's pucks were laid out thusly, to honor their senior class on senior day.


I'd like to think that Josh Brandwene's fanatical commitment to backchecking centers somehow contributed to the giant gash down the middle of this thing.


It's hardly unanimous, but it looks like the Vapor is the preferred Bauer stick of the team.


Captains Taylor Gross and Dayna Newsom receive their last-minute instructions from the officiating crew.


I realize that I took this one yesterday too, but I think I did better today.

2/23 Postgame: Josh Brandwene

Comments from head coach Josh Brandwene following Penn State's 4-2 regular-season-closing loss at Robert Morris Saturday afternoon.

W: Penn State 2 at Robert Morris 4



The Nittany Lion women (7-24-2, 1-17-2 CHA) closed the regular season by playing well in stretches, but were unable to spoil the senior day of Robert Morris (13-14-3, 9-10-1 CHA) Saturday afternoon at the Island Sports Center's 84 Lumber Arena.

Here's the RMU recap and video of the goals, followed by the live blog.




The Robert Morris University women's hockey team earned a sweep of College Hockey America (CHA) opponent Penn State by a score of 4-2 Saturday afternoon at the RMU Island Sports Center.

The Colonials honored the class of 2013 before today's contest for senior day, as three members of the senior class tallied points in game two of the series.

In similar fashion to last night's contest, RMU maintained control of the first period versus the Nittany Lions. The Colonials outshot Penn State, 12-3 throughout the first frame. Robert Morris held PSU shotless until the 9:45 mark of the period. At 15:21 of the first frame, RMU scored the opening goal of the contest as sophomore forward Rebecca Vint (Caledon, Ontario / Brampton Jr. Thunder) scored her 16th goal of the season. Freshman defenseman Megan Eady (Renfrew, Ontario / Nepean Wildcats) hit junior assistant captain Thea Imbrogno (Etobicoke, Ontario / Mississauga Jr. Chiefs) at the point who then found Vint on the right goal post for the first Colonial goal of the game. The assist is the second of Eady's freshman campaign and the 10th of the year for Imbrogno.

The Nittany Lions quickly responded to tie the game, 1-1 just 44 seconds after the RMU score. Freshman forward Shannon Yoxheimer scored the first Penn State goal at 15:45 of the first period. Defenseman Sarah Wilkie and forward Taylor Gross tallied assists on game-tying goal.

The second period proved to be the most successful for the Colonials as RMU scored two goals including the game-winner throughout the second 20 minutes of action.

Robert Morris would regain the lead as the Colonials scored an extra-attacker goal on a delayed penalty just 3:45 into the second period. Senior forward Courtney Langston(Warrensburgh, Mo. / Shattuck St. Mary's) hit junior defenseman Brandi Pollock (Virden, Manitoba / Westman Wildcats) with a pass in the left offensive faceoff zone. Pollock then found senior captain Dayna Newsom (Oakville, Ontario / Oakville Ice) on the right post for the second RMU score. The assist is the first of the season for Langston while Pollock registered her sixth of the year and second of the series with Penn State. The goal is the fourth of Newsom's senior season and her second of the series with the Nittany Lions.

The Colonials then took a 3-1 lead with 3:19 left in the period. Imbrogno found junior defenseman Anneline Lauziere (St. Thomas, Ontario / London Jr. Devilettes) who then passed off to fellow defenseman Kylie St. Louis (Windsor, Ontario / Southwest Wildcats). St. Louis fired a shot from outside the right faceoff zone that found the cage over the right should of Penn State netminder Celine Whitliner. The assists marks the 11th of the year and second of the game for Imbrogno while Lauziere tallied her third of the year. St. Louis' goal is her fourth score of the season and first game-winning goal.

RMU again dominated the shot count in the second period as the Colonials outshot the Nittany Lions, 24-2.

With 10:34 on the clock in the final frame, RMU added to its lead with a goal by senior assistant captain Cobina Delaney (Stittsville, Ontario / Ottawa Jr. Senators). After junior forward Kristen Richards (Toronto, Ontario / Niagara University) won a faceoff, Lauziere blasted a shot wide of the cage that allowed Delaney to find the puck and put in net on the wrap-around attempt. The goal is sixth of the year for Delaney and her second in two games. The assist marked Lauziere's second of the contest along with her fourth of the season and is Richards' 13th assist as a RMU Colonial.

At the 13:52 mark of the third period Penn State scored in a comeback effirt, but RMU skated the reminder of the period without giving up another goal. The second Nittany Lion goal was scored by Gross as Yoxheimer tallied notched the only assist.

The final shot count favored RMU, 57-12. The Colonials also won 39 of 58 faceoffs on the afternoon.

Senior netminder Kristen DiCiocco (Niagara Falls, Ontario / Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres) earned the victory between the pipes for Robert Morris. DiCiocco faced 10 shots in the contest to earn her 33rd career victory.

Next weekend, RMU will play a best-of-three series in the first round of the CHA playoffs. The Colonials opponent and location of the series is yet to be determined due to the Lindenwood and Syracuse series from this weekend being postponed. The two teams will faceoff Wednesday and Thursday of the upcoming week at 7 p.m. As long as Lindenwood does not sweep the Orange, Robert Morris will host the Lions in the first round.


Friday, February 22, 2013

Penn State-Robert Morris Photo Gallery

Photos from Friday night's visit to Robert Morris for the contest between the Colonials and the Nittany Lion women. Click any photo to enlarge.

RMU's Island Sports Center is easily one of my favorite venues I've visited this year, even with it being located off campus. Its name comes from the fact that it's, well, on an island - Neville Island, plopped in the middle of the Ohio River just northwest of Pittsburgh. Here's the main entrance.


To the right of that, as you're looking at it, is this piece of the exterior. See inside? Yep...


...they're essentially outdoor rinks with a roof and plastic strips for walls. Incredible. This is how the original Ice Pavilion must have been. In the photo below, the rink to the right is actually for inlines with ice on the left.


The ISC has two other, more conventional, rinks. One is an Olympic rink and the other, named 84 Lumber Arena, is where RMU's varsity teams play. Here are a couple views.



I'm always fascinated with the Penn State banners in opponents rinks.


And, of course, another banner commemorates RMU's CHA tournament championship last season.


These next three photos are from a series called "the team being stationary enough to not make the picture produced by my phone camera too blurry."




The helmets on the bench are always a solid go-to in cases when I can get to the bench.


Nicole Paniccia has my favorite mask of any Penn State goaltender. She's the one on the right.


Opening faceoff...


W: Penn State 1 at Robert Morris 4



Despite a fortunate Emily Laurenzi goal that bounced in - seemingly in slow motion - off of a Robert Morris skate to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead late in the first period, PSU (7-23-2, 1-16-2 CHA) was unable to take down the defending CHA champion Colonials (12-14-3, 8-10-1 CHA) at the Island Sports Center Friday night. The game placed Penn State in a couple of new slots in the RMU media guide, as Colonials goalie Kristen DiCiocco reset the program wins record (32) and Robert Morris rifled 63 shots at Nicole Paniccia to set a new team mark in that category.

Here's the RMU recap (as well as video of the goals), followed by the live blog.




The Robert Morris University women's hockey team earned its eighth College Hockey America (CHA) win of the season as the Colonials defeated Penn State, 4-1 Friday evening at the RMU Island Sports Center.

With tonight's win, senior goaltender Kristen DiCiocco (Niagara Falls, Ontario / Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres) earned her 32nd career victory to set a new record for wins by a single goaltender in Robert Morris program history. DiCiocco stopped 12 of the 13 shots she faced from the Nittany Lions to tally a .929 save percentage in the recording breaking victory.

To begin the Colonials last regular series of the year, Robert Morris hit the ice with great intensity. RMU outshot Penn State 16-5 throughout the first 20 minutes of play while the Colonial penalty kill stifled the Nittany Lion's only power play chance of the first frame. After an unusual failed clear attempt by RMU and an unlucky bounce, Penn State scored the opening goal of the contest with 1:14 remaining in the first period. Freshman forward Emily Laurenzi was credited with the score with Hannah Hoenshell and Paige Jahnke registering assists.

Halfway through the second period, the Colonials were able to execute multiple scoring opportunities as RMU scored its first goal of the game at 10:22 of the period. Senior assistant captain Jamie Joslin(Richmond Hill, Ontario / Aurora Panthers) stole the puck at the blue line, skated it into the offensive zone and immediately fire a shot on net. The shot deflected off the chest of PSU goaltender Nicole Paniccia as forward Rebecca Vint (Caledon, Ontario / Brampton Jr. Thunder) crashed the net hard and buried the puck past Paniccia. The assist is the 12th of the season for Joslin and the score marks the 15th of Vint's sophomore campaign.

Less than three minutes later, RMU would take a 2-1 lead off a bang-bang play from three Colonial forwards. Sophomore forward Maddie Collias (Roseville, Mich. / Belle Tire) hit linemate Katelyn Scott (Brighton, Mich. / Belle Tire) with a quick pass that allowed her to send the puck across the crease to senior captain Dayna Newsom (Oakville, Ontario / Oakville Ice) for a back door power play goal. The power play goal was scored at 13:12 of the second period. The assists are the sixth and ninth for Scott and Collias while the goal is the third of the season for Newsom. The goal is also second power play goal this year for Newsom, first game-winning goal and the second goal of she has scored against the Nittany Lions.

Throughout the second 20 minutes of action, RMU outshot Penn State 30-5. The 30 shots by the RMU marks a season-high for shots in a period. The Colonials surpassed its previous season-best 26 shots they put on net last weekend in the third period of game two against Lindenwood. Fourteen of RMU's 30 shots came on the three power play opportunities.

Robert Morris added to its lead at 5:33 of the third period when senior assistant captain Cobina Delaney (Stittsville, Ontario / Ottawa Jr. Senators) tallied her fifth goal of the year. Senior forward Kelsey Thomas (Hamilton, Ontario / Hamilton Hawks) passed to junior forward Kristen Richards (Toronto, Ontario / Niagara University) for the initial shot on net. After a scrum to the left of the cage, Delaney found the puck and lifted into the top of the net to put the Colonials up, 3-1. The assist for Thomas allows her to move into a tie for fifth all-time in career points with 75. The goal for Delaney also allows her to move into the top-10 in career goals as she has scored 22 goals in her four-year career at Robert Morris.

The Colonials scored their final goal of the contest with 2:16 remaining in the third frame to earn the 4-1 victory. The fourth RMU goal was scored by Scott for her second point of the game and fourth goal of the season. Junior defenseman Brandi Pollock (Virden, Manitoba / Westman Wildcats)passed off to Joslin at the blue line and Joslin fired a shot on net that Scott tipped in for the score. The assist marks Pollock's fifth of the year as Joslin tallied her 13th assist of the year and second of tonight's game. Joslin's two-point performance on the evening moves her career total for points to 43. The senior is now tied for most career points tallied by a Colonial defenseman. The defender also moves into a tie for third all-time in assists by a defenseman with 30 career assists.

RMU outshot the Nittany Lions 63-14 in the victory. The 63 shots on net sets a new single-game program record for Robert Morris passing the 61 shot-effort against Lindenwood last season. The Colonial penalty kill unit was a perfect four-for-four in the evening contest. The defensive unit now ranks 11th on national scene with an 85.7 kill percentage (102-119).


Thursday, February 21, 2013

Spring Commonwealth Campus Roundup

Former Ice Lion Ed Maras leads Behrend's team, which fell just short of the CHE playoffs

Here's an update on how each of Penn State's five Commonwealth Campus ACHA teams finished out their seasons. As this post is meant to pick up where the semester break update in December left off, the focus here will be on games played during January and February, but feel free to refer to the previous post for more information.

Berks (ACHA D1)

The team that now can claim the distinction of being the highest-level ACHA squad at any Penn State campus finished a rough season 8-20-2, including 2-6-0 in the spring semester. Berks' 3-9-1 ECHA record was good for seventh place in the conference, but not good enough for its six-team playoff.
 
Still, there's reason for optimism. While it's always tricky to project personnel with a Commonwealth Campus team, this season's Blue Lions only had two seniors and closed on a positive note, beating Drexel 2-1 on February 3rd and trouncing Scranton on Senior Day 9-1, a win that saw Josh Flamini, Tommy McDaniel and Sean Sowney all put up 2-2-4 scorelines. For a program that's seen the high of a nationals appearance in 2009 and the low of a 24-game losing streak to open 2010-2011, things at least seem to be trending in the right direction.
 
Right now, the bar in the ECHA is set by league champ Navy, which is headed to the ACHA championships this season. Two of the six second-half losses for PSUB came at the hands of the Midshipmen, 11-2 on January 19th and 7-2 on January 26th - but even a cursory look at the Blue Lions' results shows that they're competitive with just about everyone else, including a tough Lebanon Valley College team that finished second in the ECHA.
 
One notable story from Berks' season came on January 20th, when senior Sowney became the fourth player in program history (and the second at the ACHA D1 level) to join the 100-point club. The Delran, NJ native finished as the team's leading scorer with 44 points, but was followed closely by Larry Barretta (42) and Chris Cashin (35). Goaltender Mike Narrigan was blasted with 43.6 shots per 60 minutes but still held up well, considering, with a 4.92 goals against average and a 0.887 save percentage.

Altoona (ACHA D3)

Toontown posted a rousing 3-2 overtime win over Behrend to open the spring semester, a game that saw the Eriemen erase a 2-0 deficit (including a tying goal with 14 seconds left in regulation) before Brandon Herrman made a takeaway at his line and buried a sudden-death breakaway 1:54 into overtime.

Despite the good start, Altoona was unable to climb back into CHE playoff contention against an extremely tough schedule - three of the team's last five games were against Robert Morris and California (PA), who combined to go 21-3-0 in the league - and went 2-3-0 after the Behrend game to finish 7-11-1 overall and 3-9-0 in CHE.

The team was actually pretty close to making the playoffs after a 4-3 overtime win over St. Vincent (thanks to Ben Kinch's winner) on January 20th pulled Altoona within two points of the Polar Bearcats for the fifth and final spot. As things turned out, one more upset would have been enough, and it almost happened the day before the SVC game at home against Cal, when PSUA held a 4-2 lead halfway through before surrendering five consecutive and going on to lose 8-5. The Vulcans, by the way, went on to earn the top ranking in ACHA D3's Atlantic Region and an autobid to the national championships, so Altoona's challenging them certainly proves something.

In an end-of-the-season statement posted on the team's website, head coach Tom Lantz expressed disappointment and optimism at the same time:
Although the season did not quite turn out like we had planned, I saw significant improvement from the first half of the season to the second. I can honestly say I am extremely excited for next season as we have a strong group of freshmen returning who will be the core of PSU Altoona.
Speaking of next season, what should be a more experienced team already has its first two games posted - October 5th and 6th at George Mason.

Brandywine (ACHA D3)

Brandywine was the only one of the four ACHA D3 commonwealth campus teams to qualify for the ACHA regional tournaments, as they finished sixth in the Atlantic Region (as we've seen with D2, the top two teams in each of the four regions of D3 receive nationals autobids, while third through tenth play in regional tournaments for two additional bids from each region).

However, any national championship dreams ended abruptly and decisively with a 7-1 loss to SUNY-Maritime in Brandywine's first game at regionals. SUNY-Maritime, for what it's worth, won one of the two bids available from the tournament and will compete at nationals March 12th through 16th in Springfield, MO.

Despite that season-closing disappointment, PSUB enjoyed a very successful spring semester, going 6-3-0 after New Year's Day to finish 19-9-0 overall. Included in the six second-half wins were three against teams that qualified for regionals: Pitt-Johnstown, Alvernia and Farmingdale State, which, as the number two Atlantic team, received a nationals autobid. That last game, a 3-1 victory on January 25th, featured goals from Mike McGahey, Russell Lorring and Paul Albert, as well as two assists from defenseman Kyle Laughlin. The Alvernia win was by a 3-2 score in a gritty, penalty-filled affair the next day, with Joseph Naselli, Michael McGuire and Sean Buchanan scoring the Brandywine goals.

In a meat grinder-like Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey Conference National Division (each of the division's five teams finished in the Atlantic Region's top 12), Brandywine went 4-4-0, good for third place.

Behrend (ACHA D3)

Like Altoona, Behrend had a light schedule over the second half of the season - just five games total, including the aforementioned overtime loss to PSUA to open the semester. And also like Altoona, Behrend didn't have enough in the tank to make the CHE playoffs, finishing 8-13-2 overall and 3-8-1 in the conference to miss out on the tournament by just one point to St. Vincent.

The best play in the what-if game (beyond the January 12th contest, of course) might be Behrend's season-closing 5-3 loss at Fredonia February 10th with the playoffs still on the table. The Blue Devils built a 3-0 second-period lead through a natural hat trick by Doug Clayton, then...
With a commanding 3-0 lead the Blue Devils were near getting out of the period when Penn State was able to get their first goal of the game, on a Robert Moll penalty with only a minute left. The Penn State goal was scored by Jared Bagnato.

The late goal in the second kept Penn State rolling and they took full momentum in the game with two early goals in the third to tie the game up at 3. The goals were scored buy Kenneth Gross and Kevin Backoefer. However, the Blue Devils would not give up as they began to turn the momentum with a few big saves from [Sean] Adymy and picking up their physical play. Tyler Hagan would get Fredonia back in front, at 9:33 with goal from right from the top of the crease. Brian Marrano would later give Fredonia and insurance goal with 4:59 left in the period and would also seal the 5-3 win for Fredonia.
Actually, that might be the only play for Ed Maras' troops in the what-if game, as the other three matches were a clutch win over St. Vincent on January 25th and blowout losses to Robert Morris and Cal. Notably, all five spring semester games were played away from Behrend's home Mercyhurst Ice Center.

Defenseman Robert Banks - who scored the goal that forced overtime at Altoona before turning it over to lead to the winner - finished tied for eighth in CHE goal scoring with eight goals, impressively coming in just seven of the team's 12 conference games. Bagnato (12 goals, 22 points in all games) and Backoefer (13 goals, 25 points in all games) also stood out statistically for Behrend.

Harrisburg (ACHA D3)
 
Harrisburg can claim something none of the other Commonwealth Campus teams have - they competed in the playoffs for their league, the Mason-Dixon Collegiate Hockey Association. Of course, it helps that the Frederick, MD tournament's format includes each of the five MDCHA teams, since the Capital College finished dead last with a 1-9-0 conference record.

Expectedly, it was a short run at MDCHAs, as Mount St. Mary's ended Harrisburg's season with a 4-1 result on February 8th - despite the fact that MSM was PSUH's only conference victim, via a 7-4 win on November 5th. In that earlier game, Ian Thomson scored twice and added a pair of assists. Ian McKenna and Alex Shuey also had two goals apiece, while Richard Hoffer scored the other goal and assisted on three.

The only two games with available results in the spring semester (prior to the MDCHA tournament) were an 8-3 loss to American on January 26th and a 5-3 loss to Johns Hopkins on February 2nd.

McKenna finished as the team's leading scorer (of games reported to the ACHA) with nine goals and three assists, while Brent Antolik was the helper king with six alongside his four goals.

Note: Data on Harrisburg's team is extremely hard to come by - the team has no website, and the sites for the MDCHA, the ACHA and opponents are often not updated or incomplete. Please accept my apologies for any inaccuracies and feel free to contact me with any corrections or additional information.