After winning the last two ECAC Hockey regular-season and Ivy
League titles, the ninth-ranked Harvard women's hockey team
seeks to improve on the national stage and return to the NCAA
tournament in 2009-10.
The Crimson, which finished 19-10-3 overall last season, returns
13 players from that team, including All-America goaltender
Christina Kessler, who was tabbed to the ECAC Hockey preseason
all-conference team last month. Harvard, picked second in the ECAC
Hockey preseason coaches' poll, will be captained by senior
defensemen Cori Bassett and Kathryn Farni. Katey Stone, the Landry
Family Head Coach for Harvard Women's Ice Hockey, enters her
16th season behind the bench. Stone has amassed 319 victories over
her career, placing her second all-time in wins among Division I
head coaches, as she trails former Colby and Minnesota head coach
Laura Halldorson by 18 wins for the most ever.
Goaltending
Kessler enters her senior season tied for the NCAA lead in career
save percentage, as she boasts a .941 mark over her career. She has
earned 55 victories, placing her eight behind Ali Boe '06 for
the Harvard career wins record. Last winter, Kessler earned All-Ivy
League first team and All-ECAC Hockey second team accolades after
posting a 17-8-2 overall record. She owned a 1.59 goals-against
average, placing her third in the nation and stood seventh with a
.933 save percentage. Kessler also recorded six shutouts, giving
her 21 blank sheets for her career.
“We are very lucky to have one of the best goaltenders in
the country, as well as a strong defensive corps,” Stone
said. “We need to play great defense and work our way up the
ice.”
Freshman Laura Bellamy, a native of Duluth, Minn., will also see
action between the pipes this season.
Defense
Harvard's deepest position is defense. The Crimson boasts a
roster of seven defenders, including four returning players.
Bassett led the group offensively last season with six goals and
eight assists for 14 points and was also a force on the power play,
netting four tallies. Along with Farni, who tallied five goals from
the blue line last year, the two players combined for 59 games
played in 2008-09.
Juniors Leanna Coskren and Ashley Wheeler provide veteran
leadership and productivity, as Coskren had a goal and three
assists in 30 games played a year ago, while Wheeler earned an
assist in 12 games.
Newcomers Josephine Pucci (Pearl River, N.Y.), Kelsey Romatoski
(Woodbury, Minn.) and Hilary Hayssen (Orono, Minn.) will also earn
significant ice time in their rookie campaigns with the
Crimson.
Forwards
Junior Katharine Chute is Harvard's leading returning
scorer, as she accumulated 18 points on five goals and 13 assists
as a sophomore last season. Classmates Liza Ryabkina, who scored
nine goals and handed out six assists, and Kate Buesser, who found
the back of the net six times, are also scoring threats.
Seniors Randi Griffin (three goals, three assists) and Anna
McDonald (two goals, nine assists), as well as junior Deborah
Conway (two assists) and freshman Alisa Baumgartner (one goal)
provide experience and energy up front, giving Harvard scoring
depth.
Harvard also welcomes three freshman forwards, including Jillian
Dempsey (Winthrop, Mass.), Kaitlin Spurling (Byfield, Mass.) and
Margaret Chute (Wayzata, Minn.), sister of Katharine.
Schedule
Harvard will play 29 regular-season games, including 18 at Bright
Hockey Center, this season. The Crimson will skate in 22 ECAC
Hockey contests and five non-conference games against Hockey East
and WCHA opponents and will host the 32nd Women's Beanpot
Feb. 2 and 9. Harvard faces five teams that qualified for the 2009
NCAA tournament, and as many as six teams currently ranked in the
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine preseason poll.
“We always attempt to obtain the toughest schedule we can
play,” Stone said. “Every year we play in one of the
toughest leagues in the country, especially this season. The amount
of home games wasn't by design, but hopefully we can take
advantage and play well on home ice.”
