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The University of Maine women’s ice hockey team will start this season with a new face in charge. First year coach Lauren Steblen graduated from the university in 2002 with a degree in kinesiology and physical education, and went to Bemidji State University, where she worked for two years as assistant coach. She then returned to her alma mater and spent the past two seasons as assistant coach for the Lady Black Bears.
Steblen makes the step up to head coach this year after former coach Guy Perron became the top recruiter for the men’s squad. She will be assisted by Meghan Hunter, who joins the coaching team from Niagara, where she was assistant coach for a year following her four years of play at the University of Wisconsin. At Wisconsin, Hunter earned second team All American honors twice, and broke several school records. She was also awarded the Wisconsin Sportsmanship Award in the 2003-2004 season.
After a shaky 2004-2005 season, finishing with a record of 14-15-3, the women’s hockey team had a successful season last year, finishing fourth in the Hockey East Tournament and having Kelly Law and Julie Poulin named to the All Star Team. They set a school record by winning seventeen games during the season, and finished with a record of 17-9-6. UMaine had ten student-athletes were named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team. Hopefully this year will be even more successful for them.
The team has a strong core with 15 players returning, and they will be joined by five new freshmen who will bring something new to the squad. A group of seven seniors will hopefully provide strong leadership for the team, who will be captained by Kelly Law and Sonia Corriveau, with Rachel Gettings and Karine Senecal as assistant captains.
The squad will be backstopped by the tandem of Gettings and sophomore Genevieve Turgeon, with sophomore Lundy Day spelling the duo. Playing on defense will be freshman Elyce Thomas; sophomore Chantal Jaillet; juniors Jenna Cowan and Kim Meagher; and seniors Karine Senecal and Kelly Law. Up front for the Black Bears will be freshmen Amy Stech, Taryn Peacock, Abby Barton and Jenna Ouelette; sophomores Vanessa Vani and Robyn Law; junior Pam Patterson; and seniors Kim MacElhaney, Brigitte Laflamme, Katie Sunstrum and Sonia Corriveau.
At the Hockey East media day held on Tuesday, the team was picked to finish seventh in the league this year in the annual preseason poll, with defending champion New Hampshire picked to finish first.
The team starts their season this weekend with two games at home at the Alfond Arena. They face Mercyhurst, the No. 5 team in the nation, on Saturday at 1:00 p.m., and again on Sunday at 11:00 a.m.
Mercyhurst has played one exhibition game so far this year, beating Etobicoke 4-2 at home. They out-shot Etobicoke 47-26, with four different players notching the goals. Mercyhurst is captained this year by Julia Colizza, who will be assisted by alternate captains Stephanie Jones and Jackie Jarell, who is returning to play this year after an injury sidelined her for a year-and-a-half. Mercyhurst has some standout players this season; four of their players played for U-22 Team Canada in a tournament against the USA over the summer. Laura Hosier shut out Team USA in one of the games, Valerie Chouinard scored two goals during the three game series, and freshman Meghan Agosta, who won a gold medal for the Canadian Olympic Team, notched one goal and one assist.
