RPI Women's Hockey

[hab]

This is starting to look like RPI is having trouble filling out a full D1 Independent schedule. There are now 7 games against D3 and Canadian teams, and you could add the 4 Sacred Heart games to that list as they have tended to be a team that has been D1 in name only and largely competing against D3 teams. Robert Morris is a new D1 team and hopefully will have put together a competitive team, but who knows. That leaves only 11 games so far against established D1 teams. Hope there are more to come. I'm sure its a challenge putting together a D1 Independent schedule because almost all of the D1 teams are locked in conference schedules that don't give them a lot of flexibility on when they can play you. Is there any minimum number of games that you need to have against D1 teams to be classified as a D1 team?

[Ralph Baer]

This is starting to look like RPI is having trouble filling out a full D1 Independent schedule. There are now 7 games against D3 and Canadian teams, and you could add the 4 Sacred Heart games to that list as they have tended to be a team that has been D1 in name only and largely competing against D3 teams. Robert Morris is a new D1 team and hopefully will have put together a competitive team, but who knows. That leaves only 11 games so far against established D1 teams. Hope there are more to come. I'm sure its a challenge putting together a D1 Independent schedule because almost all of the D1 teams are locked in conference schedules that don't give them a lot of flexibility on when they can play you. Is there any minimum number of games that you need to have against D1 teams to be classified as a D1 team? I am pretty sure that there is a minimum number of games that are necessary in order to be eligible for the D-I tourney. however, as a transitioning school, I don't think that we will be eligible anyway. So the important thing seems to be to have a schedule that will help us prepare for the 06-07 schedule containing 22 ECAC games. Assuming that these are all of the non-D-I games, I think that it is appropriate. I would like to have us play a game or two against a top team even if we lose 10-0, but that probably won't happen this year.

[hab]

I would like to have us play a game or two against a top team even if we lose 10-0, but that probably won't happne this year.
At one point I had heard that we were hoping to get New Hampshire on the schedule.

[leeb]

Having Sacred Heart on there four times is unacceptable but everything else looks solid so far. It's a good mix of excellent D3 teams, Canadian teams and lower-tier D 1 teams. I would definitely like to see Yale, Vermont and Boston College on the schedule eventually. We have a history with all three of those teams.

[hab]

On further reflection, I think you're right Leeb, the schedule is shaping up pretty well. The D3 games will all be good games against quality programs. I think of Brock as a weak Canadian team, but not so - I just checked and they were very competitive against top teams last year, climbed to #9 rank, and their coach got 'coach of the year'. McGill is always among the top five or so.

[hockeynut83]

I think that you will find that Brock will be more then a challenge for RPI this year. The fact that Kate Allgood is on this team is all that should be required to back up this statement.

Brock this season will be a force as they are returning all of their key players and expect to have a few key recruits as well.

[prouddaddy]

A new recruit!

http://www.burnabynow.com/issues05/055105/sports.html

[Ralph Baer]

Press release:
2005-06 WOMEN'S HOCKEY SCHEDULE SET
Engineers set slate for inaugural season at Division I level

The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women's hockey schedule for
2005-06 its inaugural season at the Division I level has been
finalized. The Engineers, who will be an independent next year, play 29
games, including 15 home games at the Houston Field House in Troy, N.Y.

Rensselaer's Division I debut is set for Saturday, October 8, against
Sacred Heart at 7pm at the Field House. The same two teams meet again the
very next day. RPI, which is coached by John Burke, travels to Colgate the
following Friday (Oct. 14) for its first road game as a D-I program. The
Engineers host the Raiders the following night.

Following a road trip to Robert Morris (Oct. 21-22), RPI enjoys a
season-long five-game homestand beginning on October 29 against McGill of
Montreal. Boston University visits for two games on November 4-5 before
Elmira and Utica two of the top Division III teams in the nation come to
Troy on November 12-13, respectively. The next weekend features two games
at Maine before the Engineers close out the fall semester by hosting Brock,
a Canadian school, on December 4.

The spring semester opens with a pair of home games against area-rival
Union on January 6-7. After those two contests, which are both at 2:30pm,
Rensselaer plays nine straight games on the road. They begin at
Connecticut on January 12 before playing at Northeastern the next
night. The Engineers then head to Michigan for a two-game set at Wayne
State on January 20-21 before going to Clarkson (Jan. 28) and Vermont (Jan.
29). Two games at Sacred Heart (Feb. 3-4) are followed by a trip to McGill
on February 10.

The final four games will be at the Houston Field House, including two
games against Division III opponents and two contests against
Quinnipiac. Plattsburgh St. will be in town on February 12 and Williams
two days later. The season concludes the pair of games against the Bobcats
on February 18-19.

Beginning in the 2006-07 season, RPI will compete in the highly competitive
ECACHL, which features Brown, Clarkson, Colgate, Cornell, Dartmouth,
Harvard, Princeton, St. Lawrence, Union and Yale.

Rensselaer set the school record for wins in a season in 2004-05, finishing
21-6-0. The Engineers, who advanced to the ECAC East Tournament
Championship Game for the third straight year, return 14 players from that
team.

Saturday, October 8, 2005 SACRED HEART 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 9, 2005 SACRED HEART 2:00 p.m.
Friday, October 14, 2005 at Colgate 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 15, 2005 COLGATE 7:00 p.m.
Friday, October 21, 2005 at Robert Morris 7:35 p.m.
Saturday, October 22, 2005 at Robert Morris 7:35 p.m.
Saturday, October 29, 2005 McGILL 3:00 p.m.
Friday, November 4, 2005 BOSTON UNIVERSITY 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, November 5, 2005 BOSTON UNIVERSITY 4:00 p.m.
Saturday, November 12, 2005 ELMIRA 2:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 13, 2005 UTICA 2:00 p.m.
Saturday, November 19, 2005 at Maine 1:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 20, 2005 at Maine 1:00 p.m.
Sunday, December 4, 2005 BROCK 2:00 p.m.
Friday, January 6, 2006 UNION 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, January 7, 2006 UNION 2:30 p.m.
Thursday, January 12, 2006 at Connecticut 7:00 p.m.
Friday, January 13, 2006 at Northeastern 7:00 p.m.
Friday, January 20, 2006 at Wayne State 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 21, 2006 at Wayne State 2:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 28, 2006 at Clarkson 2:00 p.m.
Sunday, January 29, 2006 at Vermont 2:00 p.m.
Friday, February 3, 2006 at Sacred Heart 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 4, 2006 at Sacred Heart 3:00 p.m.
Friday, February 10, 2006 at McGill 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, February 12, 2006 PLATTSBURGH ST. 3:00 p.m.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006 WILLIAMS 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 18, 2006 QUINNIPIAC 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, February 19, 2006 QUINNIPIAC 2:00 p.m.

Bold/ALL CAPS Home games at Houston Field House (no admission charge)
All times Eastern


Edit: It looks like five new games, BU, BU, Maine, Maine, and UVM.

[Ralph Baer]

A new recruit!

http://www.burnabynow.com/issues05/055105/sports.html two new goalies. That is a bit of a surprise.

Ashley Mayr played for the BC team in the Canadian U-18 championship. http://www.hockeycanada.ca/e/championships/u18/2005/stats/lead_goal.html

born on 9/19/1987 5'8" 125lb, played for the BC Breakers in the Western Women's Hockey League: http://www.bcbreakers.com/leagues/rosters_profile.cfm?clientID=1767&leagueID=3629&teamID=63899&playerID=115453&pos=G

[Ralph Baer]

The WWHL is another league that has no age limit as one of Ashley Mayr's teammates was Cammi Granato: http://www.bcbreakers.com/leagues/team_statistics.cfm?clientID=1767&leagueID=3629&link=BCBreakers

[Ralph Baer]

From the RPI locator (or as RPIRED says "stalk a student"):

name: Mayr, Ashley Lauren
curriculum: Management
class: FR

[hab]

[QUOTE=Ralph Baer]two new goalies. That is a bit of a surprise.
QUOTE]
Two promising looking new goalies, plus a strong returning goalie in Rosina Schiff, so certainly the Engineers have depth here. This was one of the keys to Clarkson's very impressive start in D1 - they recruited a couple of strong goalies who kept the score close in a lot of games and then built from there.

[Ralph Baer]

[QUOTE=Ralph Baer]two new goalies. That is a bit of a surprise.
QUOTE]
Two promising looking new goalies, plus a strong returning goalie in Rosina Schiff, so certainly the Engineers have depth here. This was one of the keys to Clarkson's very impressive start in D1 - they recruited a couple of strong goalies who kept the score close in a lot of games and then built from there. With a total of 18 scholarships eventually available, it is doubtful that more than two will go to goalies. Having both in the same class means that every four years there will be a complete turnover. As we found out with the men's team this has its plusses and minuses. The plus is that you are likely to get at least one quality goalie who is intrigued by getting playing time as a first-yerar player. The negative is that there are growing pains every four years. I figured that with Rosina Schiff being a Senior, RPI would recruit one goalie for this Fall and one a year later. I was wrong.

[Ralph Baer]

http://www.westernwomenshockeyleague.com/leagues/rosters_profile.cfm?clientID=1754&leagueID=3639&playerID=117382&teamID=43189&pos=G

In nine games for the BC Breakers, Ashley Mayr was 2-5-1 with a 3.75 GAA and a .717 save %age :eek:. Hopefully, the experience playing against older players will help.


Edit: The team page shows her playing more games http://www.esportsdesk.com/leagues/stats_1team.cfm?leagueID=3639&clientID=1754&teamID=43189&showGameType=2&sel_roster=active with a 4.63 GAA and a .8348 save %age.

[Ralph Baer]

From the press release quoted a few posts ago The Engineers, who advanced to the ECAC East Tournament Championship Game for the third straight year, return 14 players from that team. If I have counted correctly, RPI had 16 non-seniors on the roster last season. So this means two players will not be back. It has already been stated that Julie Aho will be on a coop assignment, so one other is leaving. My guess is Christina Johnston, purely because it seems unlikely that there will be four goalies.

[RPIHFH]

Any official word on next years recruits yet?

[Ralph Baer]

Press release

WOMEN'S HOCKEY ANNOUNCES RECRUITS
Four forwards among the nine set to help RPI make jump to Division I

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) head women's hockey coach John Burke has announced that nine student-athletes will make up the program's Class of 2009. Among those expected to join the team beginning this fall are four forwards, three defensemen and two goaltenders. Four of the players are from the United States and five hail from Canada.

"We are very excited about our class," said Burke, who will guide the Engineers through their first year in Division I next season. "Each player has different attributes that should help us compete at the next level right away. This group of nine also provides depth, which is absolutely necessary when playing at Division I."

Below is an alphabetical list of Rensselaer's recruits:

Name Pos. Ht. Hometown/Previous Team(s)
Melissa Boik D 5-10 Allen Park, MI/Honeybaked Under-19
Emily Donowick F 5-6 West Seneca, NY/Nichols School & Buffalo Bison
Emily Ford G 5-7 Plymouth, MA/Tabor Academy & Assabet Valley
Melanie Guillemette D 5-6 North Bay, ON/Stoney Creek Jr. Sabres
Jaime Jacquard-Sowa F 5-10 North Vancouver, BC/BC Breakers
Ashley Mayr G 5-8 Burnaby, BC/BC Breakers
Nicole McDonald F 5-4 Ottawa, ON/Ottawa Raiders
Laura Menken D 5-6 Meadowbrook, PA/Culver Academy &
Princeton Tiger Lillies
Jaime-Lynn Stewart F 5-6 Cambridge, ON/Cambridge Jr. Fury

Rensselaer will play 29 games as an independent next season, including 15 home games at the Houston Field House. The Engineers' Division I debut is set for Saturday, October 8, against Sacred Heart at 7pm at the Field House.

Beginning in the 2006-07 season, RPI will compete in the highly competitive ECACHL, which features Brown, Clarkson, Colgate, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, St. Lawrence, Union and Yale. Dartmouth, Harvard and St. Lawrence all advanced to the 2005 Frozen Four.

Rensselaer set the school record for wins in a season in 2004-05, finishing 21--0. The Engineers, who advanced to the ECAC East Tournament Championship Game for the third straight year, return 14 players from that team.

[Ralph Baer]

From what RPIRED calls stalk-a-student:

name: Boik, Melissa Anne
curriculum: Mathematics
class: FR
rcsid: boikm

name: Donowick, Emily Nicole
curriculum: Undeclared Engineering
class: FR
rcsid: donowe

name: Ford, Emily Theresa
curriculum: Management
class: FR
rcsid: forde

name: Guillemette, Melanie Diane
curriculum: Psychology
class: FR
rcsid: guillm

name: Jacquard-Sowa, Jaime Catherine
curriculum: Management
class: FR
rcsid: jacquj

name: Mayr, Ashley Lauren
curriculum: Management
class: FR
rcsid: mayra

name: McDonald, Nicole Charron
curriculum: Undeclared Engineering
class: FR
rcsid: mcdonn

name: Menken, Laura Suzanne
curriculum: Management
class: FR
rcsid: menkel

name: Stewart, Jamie Lynn
curriculum: Undeclared
class: FR
rcsid: stewaj

[Ralph Baer]

A picture of Jaime-Lynn Stewart playing soccer http://www.cambridgetimes.ca/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=fairway/Layout/Article&call_pageid=1069421795639&c=Article&cid=1117144217595.

I had been given her name ages ago, but wan't allowed to post it. The Cambridge Fury's website disappeared after their season ended, but her line was 50-13-13-26-68. The other four names (Boik, Donowick, Jacquard-Sowa, and Menken) are new to me, and I haven't searched for them on Google yet.

[Ralph Baer]

page on Jaime Jacquard-Sowa http://www.bcbreakers.com/leagues/rosters_profile.cfm?clientID=1767&leagueID=3629&playerID=115450&teamID=43059&pos=F