University of Connecticut Athletics
Women's Hockey Earns Highest Ever National Ranking
12/11/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Ice Hockey
STORRS, Conn. (December 11, 2006) – The University of Connecticut women’s hockey team is tied for ninth in the nation this week in the USCHO.com poll. It is the first time this season that the Huskies have appeared in the national Top 10 poll and it is the highest ranking ever earned by the program. UConn is tied for ninth with Ohio State.
The U.S. College Hockey Online weekly rankings are a composite of 12 Division I coaches and three women’s hockey writers. The results of a second major national poll, the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, will be announced on Tuesday. It is the third time that UConn has ever appeared in either poll, the others coming on Feb. 23, 2005 and March 8, 2005. Both times UConn was ranked in the 10th and final position but fell out the following week.
This year, the Huskies are off to by far their best start in school history with an 11-4-1 record while standing on top of Hockey East with a 7-1-1 mark in league play. The Huskies thrust themselves into the rankings by beating a pair of ranked teams just four days apart. Last Saturday, Dec. 2, UConn took a 4-2 decision over then-No. 9 Boston College at Kelley Rink in Chestnut Hill. On Tuesday, Dec. 5, the Huskies followed it up with a 3-2 win over then-No. 5 Harvard at the Freitas Ice Forum in Storrs. It was UConn’s first ever win in five tries over the Crimson, a perennial power in the sport. The BC and Harvard wins, coupled with UConn’s previous victories over Boston University (2-0 on Nov. 11) and Northeastern (3-2 on Nov. 12), make the Huskies just the second women’s team to ever defeat all four Beanpot schools in the same season, joining the 2005-06 New Hampshire Wildcats.
Though the 2006-07 season has merely reached its midpoint with the Huskies presently breaking for final exams and the holidays, it is already tied for the second-winningest season in school history. Only the 2004-05 (16) and 2005-06 (12) teams won more games than this year’s 11-win team which still has 16 regular season contests to play.
The Huskies return to action in three weeks when they participate in the annual Nutmeg Classic. The Huskies open play in the annual event with a contest at Yale on Dec. 29.
