Gustavus vs. St. Thomas/Hamline
Date: Saturday, February 25
Time: 2 p.m.
Location: St. Peter, Minn. | Don Roberts Ice Rink
Live Coverage: Stats | Video
ST. PETER, Minn. – The No. 8-ranked Gustavus women’s hockey team is set to host a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Playoff semifinal matchup Saturday afternoon as the No. 1 seed. The Gusties (17-5-3 overall, 13-2-3 MIAC) will play either the No. 4 seed University of St. Thomas (11-10-4, 9-5-4 MIAC) or No. 5 seed Hamline University (12-12-1, 10-8 MIAC). The Tommies host the Pipers tonight in the quarterfinal game before Gustavus will face the winner tomorrow at 2 p.m. The first 150 Gustavus students will be admitted free of charge thanks to women’s hockey alumni.
ST. THOMAS WOMEN’S HOCKEY PAGE | HAMLINE WOMEN’S HOCKEY PAGE
Last Time Out: A weekend ago, Gustavus swept Hamline University by scores of 3-0 and 2-1 to clinch the program’s 14th MIAC regular season championship and earn a No. 1 seed for the MIAC Playoffs.
Gusties Collect Postseason Awards: The Gusties had a strong showing in the 2017 MIAC Women’s Hockey Awards, released Thursday. Head Coach Mike Carroll was selected as the Coach of the Year for the seventh time in his 18-year career, highlighting the announcement. Three Gusties earned spots on the All-Conference Team in Amanda DiNella (So., Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.), Kaitlyn Klein (Jr., Plymouth, Minn.), and Erica Power (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.). In addition, Emily Gustafson (Sr., Esko, Minn.), Laura Johnson (Jr., Chanhassen, Minn.) and Allie Lewis (Sr., Kearney, Neb.) were honorable mention honorees while Diana Draayer (Jr., Deephaven, Minn.) was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team.
Series Snapshot: A matchup with the University of St. Thomas would mark the 47th all-time meeting, with the Gusties holding an all-time record of 28-13-5 over the Tommies. The two teams previously met Nov. 11-12 as they saw a 2-2 draw and 3-2 St. Thomas win. In eight playoff matchups against each other, Gustavus holds the advantage with a record of 6-2 over the Tommies.
A matcup against Hamline University would mark the 36th all-time meeting between the Pipers and the Gusties. Gustavus has yet to lose a game against Hamline with an all-time record of 35-0-1, most recently sweeping Hamline to close out the regular season. The teams have faced each other twice in all-time MIAC Playoff matchups, both coming in semifinal games. The playoff record stands at 2-0 in the Gusties favor, the teams last facing each other in 2007-08 with a Gustavus 5-0 win at Don Roberts Ice Rink.
Gustavus MIAC Playoff History: Last season, the Gusties finished sixth place in the MIAC and missed the MIAC Playoffs for the first time in program history since the initiation of the playoffs during the 1999-2000 season. In the 18-year history of the playoff field, Gustavus has posted a record of 27-6-2, while going 23-1-1 at home and 15-1-1 in the semifinal round. The University of St. Thomas has won the past three MIAC Playoff titles, with the Gusties last title coming during the 2012-13 season as they won their 10th straight playoff championship.
About the Gusties: Last weekend Gustavus swept Hamline University as it closed out the regular season going unbeaten in its last 13 games to post an overall record of 17-5-3, going a league-best 13-2-3 to earn its 14th MIAC regular season championship and the top seed for the playoffs. The Black and Gold are led by Kaitlyn Klein and Erica Power, each leading the team with 17 points on the season. The Gusties are backstopped by one of the nation’s top goaltenders in Amanda DiNella. DiNella finished the regular season with a MIAC-best 0.92 goals against average, a .947 save percentage, eight shutouts, and a record of 12-2-2. Her 0.92 GAA stands as the best in the nation while the shutout mark is tied for first as well.
About the Tommies: St. Thomas closed out the regular season with a win and a tie in a series with St. Olaf College, finishing with an overall record of 11-10-4, 9-5-4 MIAC to claim the No. 4 seed for the MIAC Playoffs. The Tommies are making their 17th consecutive appearance in the MIAC Playoffs, seeking its fourth-straight playoff title and fifth all-time. St. Thomas owns an all-time playoff record of 14-13, earning four postseason championships. The Tommies are led by the league-leading scorer in Kathryn Larson, who recently earned her second-straight MIAC Player of the Year and All-Conference honors. Larson leads St. Thomas with 30 points (15g-15a) in 25 games played. Allie Borgstrom, Demi Cooper, and Leah Schwartzman also earned spots on the MIAC All-Conference Team, while Anna Williams was named to the All-Rookie Team. Kenzie Torpy leads the Tommies in net, ranking in the top-five among MIAC goaltenders in goals against average (2.31), saves (474), and win percentage (.523).
About the Pipers: Hamline was swept by Gustavus last weekend, finishing the regular season with a record of 12-12-1 overall while going 10-8 during league play to claim the No. 5 seed for the MIAC Playoffs, making its first appearance in the conference playoffs in nine years and third time in program history. The Pipers own an all-time MIAC playoff record of 2-2, last falling in a semifinal matchup against Gustavus during the 2007-08 season. Hamline is led up front by the MIAC-leading goal scorers in Darby Dodds and Bre Simon, who both earned AllConference nods with Simon being honored on the All-Rookie Team as well. Annie Juergens and Jaime Hathaway have shared time in net, Juergens leading with sevens wins in net as she garnered All-Rookie Team honors.
In the polls: Gustavus most recently moved up to No. 8 in the latest USCHO.com NCAA Division III Women’s Poll. The Gusties cracked the top-10 for the first time during the season last week, coming in at No. 9. The last time Gustavus was ranked was during the week of Nov. 13, 2015, a season ago – also ranking at No. 9.
400 Milestone: On December 3rd at the College of Saint Benedict, a 3-2 win marked the 400th all-time victory in Gustavus women’s hockey program history. The Gusties are the fastest team in the MIAC to reach the 400 mark.