SAINT PETER, Minn. — The Gustavus women’s hockey team is set to host Hamline at 4 p.m. Sunday for a MIAC semifinal playoff matchup at Don Roberts Ice Rink. As the league’s No. 1 seed, the Gusties earned a first round bye, while the fifth-ranked Pipers captured a 2-1 overtime victory over No. 4 St. Olaf Friday night.
GUSTIES IN THE MIAC PLAYOFFS
The MIAC Women’s Hockey Playoffs began in 2000, and since then, Gustavus has made 21 playoff appearances, missing the tournament only once in the 2015-16 season. The Gusties boast an all-time playoff record of 34-9-2, collecting a conference leading 13 championships, including two in the last two years of the tournament. The Gusties own the No. 1 seed after rolling to their record 18th Regular Season Championship this season. Last year, the Gusties hosted Hamline in the title game, defeating the Pipers by a score of 6-1 and earning the MIAC’s automatic qualifier to the national tournament. The Gusties advanced to the NCAA DIII Championship game, falling to Middlebury in a 3-2 overtime thriller.
THE SERIES
Sunday’s game will mark the 50th all-time meeting between Gustavus and Hamline on the ice, and the fourth playoff meeting between the two teams, with the Gusties holding the winning playoff record, 3-1, including last year’s championship game.
The Gusties swept the Pipers in the regular season with a 3-2 victory to open the series and an 8-0 rout the following day. Between the two games, the Gusties scored three shorthanded goals, including two off the stick of Hailey Holland (Sr., Aberdeen, S.D.), who finished the series with three goals and one assist on the weekend. Tina Press (Sr., Cottage Grove) added the Gusties’ other shorthanded tally, and tacked on three more assists for four points as well. Katie McCoy (Sr., Grafton, Wis.) made 22 saves through the two games, earning the shutout in the 8-0 win.
The Pipers, who made a late push in the Friday night game, got goals from Morgan Wohlers and Sydney Lemke to try to push even with the MIAC’s top team, but came up just short in the 3-2 loss. Maddie Nickell made 46 saves for the Pipers in her first showing, following the performance up with a 23-save effort the next day, splitting time with Airika Penney, who made 13 saves in the final period of relief for the Pipers.
The Gusties enter the semifinal on a six-game winning streak that started with the 3-2 victory over the Pipers on Feb. 3. Ranked No. 1 in the week’s USCHO DIII Women’s Hockey poll, the Gusties will look to win their third-straight MIAC Playoff Championship.
SCOUTING THE GUSTIES
The Gusties finished the regular season with a 22-3 overall record and a 17-1-0 conference record. The Gusties, who are yet to fall below the No. 2 spot in the nation, lead the MIAC in every statistical category but two and boast 20 top-10 NCAA statistics. Hailey Holland has served as the Gusties’ offensive leader this year, scoring 30 points on 17 goals and 13 assists. Emily Olson (Sr., Delano) isn’t far behind, totaling 26 points with the team’s lead in assists at 20. Not to be overshadowed by her sister, Kaitlyn Holland (So., Aberdeen, S.D.) is third on the roster in points, sharing the spot with Brooke Power (Jr., Lakeville), each with 15 goals and nine assists for 24 points. Back on the blue line, Kayla Vrieze (Sr., Eagan) and Brooke Remington (Jr., Scandia) lead the team’s defenders in scoring, with Vrieze tallying 19 points and Remington adding 14 of her own. McCoy has seen the most time in net, earning her spot as one of the NCAA’s best goaltenders. McCoy holds a goals-against-average of 0.78 and a save percentage of .947, boasting a 21-3 overall record.
The Gusties have set a handful or records this season as well, with Press and Hailey Holland both eclipsing 100 career points, becoming the 13th and 14th Gusties to do so. Press is currently tied for eighth all-time among Gustie point scorers with 113 in her career, while Holland sits in 11th with 105. McCoy broke the program’s shutout record with her 25th, earned in the team’s 8-0 win over the Pipers. McCoy’s 26 career shutouts are also second among active NCAA goaltenders of any division – male or female – behind only Stephanie Martin of UW-Eau Claire who has 28.
SCOUTING THE PIPERS
Hamline entered MIAC post-season play as the No. 5 seed, having carried a record of 9-15-1 in the regular season and a mark of 8-9-1 in the conference. The Pipers earned a semifinal spot after defeating the No. 4 seed St. Olaf 2-1 in overtime. Emme Nelson was the hero for the Pipers, scoring 5:14 into the extra period for her sixth goal of the season. The Pipers also got a goal from sophomore Nikki Olund, who tallied her team-leading 10th of the year. Olund shares the team lead in points with Haley Eder-Zdechlik at 15 a piece. The Pipers have split goaltending duties between four netminders, led by Maddie Nickell, who holds a goals-against-average of 2.84 on a 3-6-0 record. Olivia Rinzel has the best record between the pipes at 4-3-0, boasting a save percentage of .923 and a goals-against-average of 2.15.