Minnesota Duluth's Potter Named 2004 Kazmaier Finalist
March 17, 2004
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Madison, Wis. - The University of Minnesota Duluth's Jenny Potter has been named one of three finalists for the 2004 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. The award is given annually by the USA Hockey Foundation to the most outstanding player in women's collegiate ice hockey. This year's award will be presented on March 27 during the NCAA Women?s Frozen Four tournament in Providence, R.I.
Potter is joined by Harvard University senior defenseman Angela Ruggiero and Northeastern University senior goaltender Chanda Gunn as this year's finalists. All three finalists were among the Top 10 candidates last year, while Potter and Ruggiero were also top three finalists.
Earlier this year, the women's NCAA Division I hockey head coaches nominatec up to two players from their team for The 2004 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. Those players were placed on an official ballot and sent to the coaches who then voted for the top 10 finalists. The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) boasted five of the 10 finalists including Potter, Minnesota's Krissy Wendell and Natalie Darwitz, Minnesota Duluth's Caroline Ouellette and Minnesota State?s Shari Vogt.
The finalists, as well as the recipient of the 2004 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, are chosen by a 13-member selection committee comprised of women's intercollegiate varsity ice hockey coaches, representatives of the print and broadcast media, and a representative of USA Hockey, the National Governing Body for the sport of hockey in the United States. Candidates for the award must compete for a women's intercollegiate varsity ice hockey team at an NCAA-member institution. Other selection criteria include outstanding individual and team skills, sportsmanship, performance in the clutch, personal character, competitiveness and a love of hockey. Consideration will also be given to academic achievement and civic involvement.
Potter, who also was a top three Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award finalist one year ago and was among the top 10 candidates in 2000, currently ranks second in the nation behind teammate Caroline Ouellette with 75 points on 36 goals and 39 assists in 34 games. The Eagan, Minn., native has also been credited with an NCAA-leading 10 game-winning goals (10) and is tied for second in both shorthanded tallies (4) and goals per game average (1.06). Potter has rolled up 256 points (108 goals and 148 assists) in just 102 career outings while assuming the No. 1 spot on the Bulldogs' all-time scoring charts.
A member of the U.S. Olympic Team in 1998 and 2002, Potter topped the WCHA in five categories this season including points (57), goals (28), shorthanded goals (4), shorthanded points (6), and game winning goals (7).
In the classroom, Potter carries a 3.33 grade-point average with a major in organizational behavior management. Potter and the three-time defending NCAA champion Bulldogs placed second in last weekend's WCHA Final Five playoff championships and are 20-12-2 overall in 2003-04.
Now in its seventh year, The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award was first presented to University of New Hampshire forward Brandy Fisher (Colton, N.Y.) in 1998. Harvard University forward and two-time U.S. Olympian A.J. Mleczko (Nantucket, Mass.) received the accolade in 1999. Brown University goaltender Ali Brewer (Racine, Wis.) was the 2000 recipient, and Brooke Whitney (Snohomish, Wash.), a forward from Northeastern University, was named the 2002 winner. In 2001 and 2003, two-time Canadian Olympian Jennifer Botterill (Winnipeg, Man.) was honored with the award, and is the only two-time recipient.
The award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman for the Princeton University women's ice hockey team from 1981-82 through 1985-86. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-82 through 1983-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died on Feb. 15, 1990 at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.
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