COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The USA Hockey Foundation today announced the top-10 finalists for the 2019 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. The honor is bestowed annually upon the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey, and this year will be unveiled at a brunch ceremony at Cascade Fine Catering in Hamden, Connecticut, on Saturday, March 23, as part of the NCAA Women's Frozen Four weekend hosted by Quinnipiac University.
#KazWatch https://t.co/LAXECY4XIh
— Clarkson Womens Hockey (@CUknights) February 20, 2019
The top-10 finalists include: sophomore forward Jesse Compher (Northbrook, Ill./Boston University), senior forward Jessie Eldridge (Barrie, Ont./Colgate University), freshman forward Sarah Fillier (Georgetown, Ont./Princeton University), senior forward Loren Gabel (Kitchener, Ont./Clarkson University), sophomore forward Elizabeth Giguere (Quebec City, Que./Clarkson University), senior defender Megan Keller (Farmington Hills, Mich./Boston College), freshman forward Alina Mueller (Winterthur, Switzerland/Northeastern University), senior forward Annie Pankowski (Laguna Hills, Calif./University of Wisconsin), senior forward Nicole Schammel (Red Wing, Minn./University of Minnesota) and senior goaltender Lovisa Selander (Sollentuna, Sweden/Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute).
🚨🚨 For the third time in her career, Megan Keller has been named a Patty Kazmaier Top-10 Finalist!
— BC Women's Hockey (@BC_WHockey) February 21, 2019
📝: https://t.co/qcIWROYjUd#WeAreBC🦅 pic.twitter.com/QYcfmLe5Wz
SELECTION PROCESS
The selection process commenced earlier this month when NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches were asked to nominate players for the award. Players who were nominated by multiple coaches were then placed on an official ballot, which was sent back to the coaches to vote for the top-10 finalists. The independent accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP, tabulated the ballots.
The three finalists, including the recipient of the 2019 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, will be chosen by a 13-person selection committee made up of NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches, representatives of print and broadcast media, an at-large member and representative of USA Hockey, the national governing body for the sport of ice hockey in the United States. The top-three finalists will be announced on Thursday, Feb. 28.
Save the date 📅
— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey) February 19, 2019
Back-to-back national champion and @CUknights defender Taylor Turnquist will be hosting a Twitter Q&A this Thursday! Submit your questions NOW by using #AskTaylor.#NCAAWHockey
Tickets to the 2019 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Ceremony and Brunch can be purchased at PattyKaz.com. Individual seats to the event are $65, while tables of 10 are available for $600. A select number of sponsorships and program advertisements are also available.
Notes: Nine schools are represented in the top-10, including two finalists for Clarkson University... Among the top-10 finalists are eight forwards, one defender and one goaltender, including six seniors, two sophomores and two freshmen ... ECAC Hockey leads all conferences with five finalists, while the Hockey East Association boasts three finalists and the Western Collegiate Hockey Association has two finalists.
2019 Championship: Tickets | Info
ABOUT THE PATTY KAZMAIER MEMORIAL AWARD
An award of The USA Hockey Foundation, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is annually presented to the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey. Selection criteria includes outstanding individual and team skills, sportsmanship, performance in the clutch, personal character, competitiveness and a love of hockey. Consideration is also given to academic achievement and civic involvement.
HISTORY HAS BEEN MADE‼️ Congrats to Jessie Eldridge, who is the first Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Top-10 Finalist in @ColgateAthletic history!
— Colgate Women’s Hockey (@ColgateWIH) February 21, 2019
READ👉https://t.co/xfdI18yYt5#WePlayFree #GoGate pic.twitter.com/ZLc2yigGDQ
ABOUT PATTY KAZMAIER
The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman at Princeton University from 1981-86. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.
For more information, contact Andrea Mazzarelli (andrea.mazzarelli@usahockey.org / 719-538-1169)
