March 12, 2008

Colorado Springs, Colo. - The USA Hockey Foundation announced today that sophomore forward Meghan Agosta (Ruthven, Ont./Mercyhurst College) is one of three finalists again for the 2008 Patty Kazmaier Award. It's the second straight year Agosta has been honored.

The other finalists are sophomore goaltender Kim Martin (Stockholm, Sweden/University of Minnesota Duluth) and senior forward Sarah Vaillancourt (Sherbrooke, Que./Harvard University). The award is presented annually to the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey.

2008 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Finalists

Meghan Agosta • Mercyhurst College
Sophomore • Forward • 32GP, 39-24--63

Kim Martin • Univ. of Minnesota Duluth
Sophomore • Goaltender • 28-4-1, 1.39, .949

Sarah Vaillancourt • Harvard University
Senior • Forward • 32GP, 24-34--58

The trio represents three different NCAA Division I women's ice hockey conferences - College Hockey America (Agosta), ECAC Hockey (Vaillancourt) and the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (Martin). Last year, Agosta was in the top three, while Vaillancourt was a top-10 finalist.

This year's winner will be revealed at an award ceremony on March 21 at the Radisson Hotel Duluth Harborview in Duluth, Minn., in conjunction with the NCAA Women's Frozen Four. It will feature the three finalists, the Frozen Four participating teams and Angela Ruggiero as the master of ceremonies. Tickets to the event may be purchased at PattyKaz.com or by calling 800-566-3288, ext. 184 ($75/individual seats, $700/table of 10).

Agosta is again having a record-breaking season at Mercyhurst College. After becoming the first-ever freshman to become a top-three finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award last year, she returns to the top three after putting up big numbers during the 2007-08 season. Agosta finished the regular season with 61 points (37-24) and ranked first in the NCAA with an average of 1.23 goals per game and second with 2.03 points per game. She was named CHA Player of the Year, was a unanimous First Team All-CHA honoree and was the tournament MVP in leading the Lakers to the CHA championship. With Mercyhurst as the No. 7 seed heading into the NCAA tournament, Agosta has 63 points (39-24) in 32 games played.

Martin is one of just three sophomores ever to make it to the top three for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. This season, Martin backstopped and captained her University of Minnesota Duluth team to a 24-4-1 regular-season record and its first WCHA regular-season championship since 2003. Martin held a .950 save percentage and 1.40 goals-against average to be among the country's best in both categories. Named to the All-WCHA First Team, she led the Bulldogs to their first WCHA playoff title in five years and earned a spot on the all-tournament team. Heading into the NCAA tournament with UMD as the No. 2 seed, Martin holds a 1.39 GAA and .949 save percentage with a 28-4-1 overall record.

Vaillancourt has been an instrumental force in one of Harvard University's best seasons to date, as the Crimson held a 27-1-0 regular-season record. She finished the regular season with 53 points (21-32) to rank fifth in the NCAA with 1.89 points per game. Named the ECACH Player of the Year and Ivy League Player of the Year, she also earned ECACH First Team and First Team All-Ivy League honors. In addition, Vaillancourt helped Harvard to the ECACH championship. With the title win, the Crimson became the first team in ECACH history to be perfect in conference play during the regular season and in the playoffs (26-0-0). Going into the NCAA tournament with Harvard as the No. 1 seed, Vaillancourt has 58 points (24-34) in 32 games played.

The top three finalists, including the recipient of the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, are chosen by a 13-member selection committee comprised of NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches, representatives of the print and broadcast media and a representative of USA Hockey, the National Governing Body for the sport of ice hockey in the United States.

NOTES: Meghan Agosta is the only top-three finalist in Mercyhurst history (2007 & 2008) ... Kim Martin is the fifth top-three finalist from UMD (Jenny Potter-2003 & 2004, Caroline Ouellette-2005, Rita Schaublin-2006) ... Vaillancourt is the eighth top-three finalist from Harvard (A.J. Mleczko-1999, Jennifer Botterill-2001 & 2003, Tammy Shewchuk-2001, Angela Ruggiero-2003 & 2004, Julie Chu-2007) ... Agosta, Martin and Vaillancourt were named among the top-10 finalists for the award on Feb. 26, along with Melissa Boal (Pakenham, Ont./Wayne State University), Tessa Bonhomme (Sudbury, Ont./The Ohio State University), Caitlin Cahow (Branford, Conn./Harvard University), Sam Faber (Mt. Sinai, N.Y./University of New Hampshire), Martine Garland (Toronto, Ont./University of New Hampshire), Sabrina Harbec (St. Hubert, Que./St. Lawrence University) and Gigi Marvin (Warroad, Minn./University of Minnesota) ... The 2008 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Dinner will be held in conjunction with the NCAA Women's Frozen Four, set for March 20 & 22 at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center.

ABOUT THE PATTY KAZMAIER MEMORIAL AWARD
An award of The USA Hockey Foundation, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award recognizes the accomplishments of the most outstanding player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey each season. Selection criteria includes outstanding individual and team skills, sportsmanship, performance in the clutch, personal character, competitiveness and a love of hockey. Consideration is also given to academic achievement and civic involvement.

ABOUT PATTY KAZMAIER
The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman for Princeton University from 1981-86. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died on Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.

Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Winners

Year Name School
1998 Brandy Fisher University of New Hampshire
1999 A.J. Mleczko Harvard University
2000 Ali Brewer Brown University
2001 Jennifer Botterill Harvard University
2002 Brooke Whitney Northeastern University
2003 Jennifer Botterill Harvard University
2004 Angela Ruggiero Harvard University
2005 Krissy Wendell University of Minnesota
2006 Sara Bauer University of Wisconsin
2007 Julie Chu Harvard University

Story courtesy of Christy Jeffries, USA Hockey