The Engineers are coming off their tenth season in the ECAC and with some strong parallels with the RPI men's team which has just completed its 10th season under Appert. The women bounced back from their worst season in the ECAC ('13-'14 was the second worst for the men under Appert) and in both cases much of the credit for the recovery has to go to strong goaltending. This year, both teams achieved modest milestones: the women had an 'average' year (.397 win % vs. .398 ave over 10 yrs) and made it back into the playoffs, but just barely; the men climbed back over .500 for the first time in 4 yrs and advanced to the second round of playoffs (in men's hockey, for reasons I will never comprehend, everyone gets into the first round of playoffs). RPI fans have to be modestly pleased with the improvement in both teams, but let's face it, .400 hockey for the women and .500 hockey for the men will never be enough to meet expectations at RPI. The other important parallel between the two teams is that they both played a hard-working and entertaining brand of hockey this year.
Looking forward, the brightest spot for the women's team is that they have 3 more years of Lovisa Selander around whom to build a more competitive team...whereas the men may lose Kasdorf to the Sabres. I hope to find time to do a more detailed look at what the women will gain and lose from the roster next year, but in the meantime I'm looking forward to watching the NCAA final four.
Looking forward, the brightest spot for the women's team is that they have 3 more years of Lovisa Selander around whom to build a more competitive team...whereas the men may lose Kasdorf to the Sabres. I hope to find time to do a more detailed look at what the women will gain and lose from the roster next year, but in the meantime I'm looking forward to watching the NCAA final four.
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