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Issued: October 26, 2007

2007-08 WOMEN’S HOCKEY SEASON PREVIEW

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. – With only seven returning letterwinners, including two juniors and five sophomores, the UW-Eau Claire women’s hockey team will look to the young players to step up and play an important role on this year’s team.

“The biggest challenge this year will be for the group of upperclassmen, of which there are no seniors, to provide leadership and direction for a great group of freshmen,” said head coach Mike Collins.

While there are no seniors, juniors and two-time letterwinners Margaret Campbell (Plymouth, MN/Wayzata) and Lauren Havard (San Angelo, TX/Arapahoe) will look to provide the leadership the young team is seeking. Campbell will serve as captain of this year’s squad, while Havard and sophomore Beth Dittrich (Roseville, MN) will take on assistant captain roles.

Last season, Havard finished third on the team with total points scored, while Dittrich and Campbell finished tied for fourth. Dittrich finished with eight of the Blugolds’ 67 goals, with Campbell and Havard adding seven more apiece.

The other four returning letterwinners are Michelle Stohr (So.-South St. Paul, MN), Magan Wurdelman (So.-Sauk Rapids, MN/Sauk Rapids-Rice), Amanda Alioto (So.-Hartland, WI/Arrowhead) and Hannah Kinney (So.-Avoca, WI/Riverdale). Stohr is the only Blugold on the team this season who received All-Northern Collegiate Hockey Association honorable mention defensive honors last season. She finished with 15 points, 8 goals and 7 assists.

The Blugolds will have 13 new faces on the team this season. Of the 13, two will contend for the goalie position, as no one returns in that spot. The three contenders are all freshmen and are Danika Porter (Rosemount, MN) and Lindsay Savat (Apple Valley, MN/Thomas Jefferson).

There will also be a few changes in the coaching staff this season. Amanda Schultz, a former Blugold women’s hockey player, will return for her second season as an assistant. She is the program’s all-time leading scorer in addition to being it’s only Academic All-American. Brendan Gray, an assistant from last year, has left to join the men’s hockey team as a player. Steve Dus, Marc Paulson and Mike Kealy will join the women’s program this season. Dus is a four-time letterwinner of the men’s hockey program and played in 71 games over his entire career. Paulson will be the goaltending coach this season, while Kealy, a former Hudson High School girl’s coach, will primarily deal with recruiting.

- KM -

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