Gopher Women's Hockey: Gopher Trio Earns All-American Honors

[Twynntown]

Ramsey, Brandt and McMillen pick up AHCA All-American honors


AHCA All-American Release | AHCA Coach of the Year Release

HAMDEN, Conn. – The American Hockey Coaches Association honored three Golden Gopher women’s hockey players with 2014 CCM Division I Women’s Hockey All-American accolades, and head coach Brad Frost was named the STX/AHCA Division I Women’s Coach of the Year at the 2014 NCAA Women’s Frozen Four banquet Thursday evening.

Sophomore Hannah Brandt (Vadnais Heights, Minn.) and junior Rachel Ramsey (Chanhassen, Minn.) were named First Team All-Americans, and sophomore Milica McMillen (St. Paul, Minn.) was honored as a Second Team All-American. Including the three 2014 honorees, Minnesota has now had 30 Gopher women’s hockey players earn All-American status.

Ramsey ranks second in the nation in scoring among blue-liners with 1.10 points per game in 39 games. Her 43 points (12 goals, 31 assists) is a career-best and good for fifth on the team. The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Defensive Player of the Year, Ramsey led the WCHA in scoring with 30 points in league games. She was also honored as a WCHA First Team honoree, a WCHA Scholar-Athlete and a WCHA All-Academic Team member this season.

Along with her First Team All-American honors, Brandt was named the 2014 WCHA Player of the Year and a top-three Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award finalist. The sophomore forward enters the Frozen Four as the nation’s leader with 63 points, 41 assists and 1.05 assists per game. Brandt followed up a stellar freshman campaign with 22 goals and 41 assists and finished the regular season as the WCHA Scoring Champion with 40 points (14 goals, 26 assists) in league games. She joined Ramsey as a WCHA First Team honoree, a WCHA Scholar-Athlete and a WCHA All-Academic Team member this season.

McMillen, a 2014 All-WCHA First Team honoree, enters the Frozen Four ranked third in the nation in scoring among defensemen with 1.03 points per game in 37 games. Her 38 points (11 goals, 27 assists) ranks sixth on the team and is a career-high for the sophomore. McMillen recorded 11 points (three goals, eight assists) during a seven-game point streak this season (Nov. 23-Jan. 10) and was twice named the WCHA Defensive Player of the Week.

This marks the second-straight year Minnesota has had three All-American honorees after Megan Bozek, Amanda Kessel and Noora Raty were honored with first team accolades in 2013.

Frost picked up his second-straight national Coach of the Year award this season after leading the Gophers to a 37-1-1 overall record entering the Frozen Four. Frost was honored as the 2014 WCHA Coach of the Year as well. Prior to Frost taking the helm of the program, former Minnesota head coach Laura Halldorson was named the AHCA Coach of the Year in 1998, 2002 and 2004.

The 2014 NCAA Women’s Frozen Four begins with two semifinal games Friday. Minnesota faces Wisconsin at 4 p.m. CT, and Clarkson and Mercyhurst face off in the second semifinal at 7 p.m. CT. The semifinal winners meet in Sunday’s national championship game at 2 p.m. CT. All three games will be played at Quinnipiac’s High Point Solutions Arena at the TD Bank Sports Center and streamed live online at NCAA.com.

Information Courtesy of Mandy Hansen - Golden Gopher Athletics

 

[MRJ]

The highs just keep coming for this group! They just defeated Wisconsin 5-3 in the NCAA Semifinals, scoring three third period goals to come from behind. Now 79-1-1 in their last 81! On to the title tilt on Sunday and a chance for three straight!!!

 

[PartoPitinosPosse]

Does anyone else feel that the only reason Rigsby got the nod over Leveille is because she was a Senior and Amanda just a Soph? I do understand some think that since Amanda had more talented players in front of her, that she wasn't as challenged as Rigsby was. Not sure I agree. I sure wish Wisconsin had played Clarkson and not us in the Semis. Not that I feel the eventual outcome would have been different, but just for the purposes of gauging other WCHA teams vs eastern teams. With only 2 Western Schools getting into the NCAA tournament, and both of those schools being on the same side of the bracket, it just seems convenient for the eastern schools how it all worked out. I'm not taking anything away from Clarkson, they were clearly the best team from the east, and outplayed the Gophers in that game. Just always think of the scenario, if you played a team ten times, how many games would you win? We played Wisconsin 5 times and beat them all 5 times, and they were rated #2 in the country until we beat them the last 2 times, then they dropped down to #4. But we only played Clarkson once, and they didn't have to play Wisconsin at all. Was this a case of the difference in talent from the best in the east not being all that different from the best in the west, or did Clarkson do something similar to what the 1980 Men's Olympic team did? Brooks said they might lose 9 out of 10 games vs the Russian team, but that game was going to be the 1 win. Did Clarkson win their 1 out of 10, or is it closer than that? I'd guess its closer than 1 out of 10, but how much closer, and is it possible that Clarkson is actually the better team? I'd hate to take anything away from a team that has earned as much, but without more cross conf play to gauge the different teams, its hard to say?


Either way, congrats to both teams, it was a great game, very exciting, neither team thought that they were going to lose and both played very hard the entire game, with lots of confidence and the better team that day won the game. An eastern team winning a title has to be good for women's hockey. But I still hope the Gophers go back to winning back to back again next year and the year after that. Guess anything can happen, injuries, how freshman play, and UMn's not the only team getting an Olympian back in the lineup.

 

[jamesfry]

All 3 are coming back for next season!! So very Proud of you 3, your whole Team and Coach Frost!! Good Luck on 3peat!! Go Golden Gophers!!