Two Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Hockey League (ECACHL) titles in the last five years; four NCAA Frozen Four appearance in a half decade; four former Olympians, including three from the gold-medal winning Canadian women's hockey team at the 2008 Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy; two preseason All-League selections; the top-ranked team in the Ivy League and ECACHL preseason polls; and to top it all off, a No. 6 national ranking in the United States College Hockey Organization preseason poll.
With statistics like these, it's safe to say that the 2006-2007 Dartmouth women's hockey team has some pretty big expectations this season, and head coach Mark Hudak is confident that his squad, Olympians and non-Olympians alike, can meet those expectations.
"A lot of things have to fall into place to win a national championship," he said. "We have a ton of talent returning. You need some strong leadership at the top, and that is essentially something we missed last year. I think [the rankings] sent a message that we have a lot of good kids coming back, but there are a lot of good teams out there. We have to go out and prove that we can be better than them."
Heading the charge to the NCAA championships will be the veteran leadership of the returning Canadian Olympians, led by team captain Gillian Apps '06. Apps has recorded 60 goals and 52 assists for 112 points in 82 games during her three-year career for the Big Green. She was named an honorable mention All-Ivy selection her freshman year and garnered second team All-Ivy and honorable mention All-ECACHL accolades during her sophomore campaign.
Even more impressive has been Apps' impact on the international level. She led Team Canada in goals scored with five at the 2006 Winter Olympics, where she was joined on the team by fellow fifth-year seniors Katie Weatherston '06 and Team Canada's leading points scorer Cherie Piper '06. They have combined for 388 career points at Dartmouth and will bring a wealth of experience and skill to the Big Green's forward contingent.
Hudak also noted that there are some rough spots in the trio's transition back to life and hockey at Dartmouth.
"They don't know half of the students here. They're here with a school as well as a team that they don't know half the people. They also played on the best team in the world last year. Every team they played against was not as good as they were. Coming back to Dartmouth, we're not better than every team we play. We're going to have a number of games this year that we will have to play our 'A' game to win," Hudak said.
Bolstering the offense for Dartmouth will be highly-touted freshman Sarah Parsons '09. In high school, Parsons received Massachusetts' Independent School League's Most Valuable Player award from 2002-2005 and earned The Boston Globe's prep athlete of the year award. At age 17, she was the youngest player on the bronze-medal winning United States squad at Torino and led Team USA in scoring with four goals.
Parsons is joined by five other freshman on the 2006-2007 roster. They are forwards Sarah Toupal '10 and Jenna Cunningham '10; defenseman Sue Schmitz '10; and goalies Sarah Kennedy '10 and Mariel Lacina '10. These freshmen make up part of a 21-player roster, one of the largest rosters in recent memory and a far cry from the small numbers that plagued last year's 12-13-5 team.
Not only did Apps and Parsons return to Hanover with medals around their necks, but they distinguished themselves as two of the premier women's hockey players in the world.
When SportsIllustrated.com writer Michael Farber named Apps and Parsons to his All-Tournament Team, he wrote, "In a battle for the title of Next Great Player, Apps edged the gifted Sarah Parsons of the U.S." Not only does Dartmouth have the future best player in the world, but it also has her anointed successor skating alongside.
But it takes a complete team effort to win championships, and the Big Green has plenty of talent across the board. "We're certainly going to be strong up front offensively, we've got some great leadership up front," said Hudak. "But I also think we have a lot of balance on the team, maybe more than past years. What I'm most focused on right now is that we come together as quickly as possible as a team."
Returning starter Maggie Kennedy '09 led Dartmouth in scoring last season with 24 points in all 29 games while linemate Shannon Bowman '09 was tops on the team with 12 goals. Assistant captain Caroline Ethier '07 returns this year after tying for second on the team with 23 points. Assistant captain Nicole Ruta '08, Carrie Thompson '08 and Marley McMillan '09, who recorded a point in each of the final six games of the season last year, also bring veteran experience and leadership.
Supporting the Big Green's talented offense will be one of the most experienced defenses in the ECACHL. This unit, however, returns only two upperclassmen, a fact that testifies to the major role last season's freshmen and sophomores played in the blueline corps. Meredith Batcheller '07 is the veteran of the unit with 95 career games played. Amy Cobb '08, Sarah Newman '09, Katie Gray '09 and Julia Bronson '09 return to the backline a year after allowing only 2.41 goals per game.
Starting between the pipes for the Big Green will be sophomore Carli Clemis '09. Clemis, who split time last year with Kate Lane '06, compiled a 5-2-2 record with a .912 save percentage and 2.24 GAA.
"Carli would have played more games last season, but up until Christmas she was injured. This year, in practice she looks right-on and I think she'll do a great job this year," Hudak said, adding that the addition of Sarah Kennedy and Lacina will create a healthy competitive environment.
The Big Green opens its season at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 21 and 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 22 with two matches against Mercyhurst at Erie, Pa. Dartmouth's home opener will be at 2 p.m. on Saturday Oct. 28 when Union travels to Thompson Arena.
