Headlines, News and Links to Details

2003 News and Game Details:
 

1/23 Cobbers Can't Contain League-Leading St. Thomas for Full 60 Minutes, Fall 6-0.
           | St. Thomas 4, Concordia 0 | Action Picture Page |

(Moorhead, Minn.)-- For 39:44, the Concordia women's hockey team held league-leading, and undefeated, St. Thomas to only one goal. Unfortunately for the Cobbers there was still 20:16 left to play in the game. The Tommies struck for a single goal to finish the second period, and then put in four more in the third period to come away with the 6-0 win. 

With the loss, Concordia falls to 2-5-0 in the MIAC and 3-6-0 overall. St. Thomas stays perfect in league play, upping their mark to 9-0. They are currently 11-4-1 overall.

The Tommies scored the lone goal of the first period. Sue Heinmiller scored the first of her two goals at the 6:47 mark to give St. Thomas a 1-0 lead after one period. The teams were almost deadlocked in shots on goal for the first 20 minutes, with the Tommies holding a 9-7 advantage. 

The second period played out the same as the first, with the Tommies controlling the play and Concordia trying to counter. St. Thomas had the upper hand in scoring chances, and was finally able to beat Cobber goaltender Jenna Johnson (So., Wadena, Minn./Wadena-Deer Creek HS) with only 15 seconds left in the period. 

The game did not get away from the Cobbers until midway through the final frame. The Tommies collected a third goal at 7:05, and then St. Thomas put the game out of reach. With a player in the penalty box, the Tommies scored two shorthanded goals in the span of 24 seconds midway through the period. Heinmiller scored her second goal of the game at 10:12 and then Allison Turgeon countered with a goal at 10:36. Both goals were unassisted.

Maureen Hardwick, St. Thomas' leading scorer, finished off the scoring by netting her fifth goal of the year at 17:59. 

Lindsay Czarnecki (Jr., Riverside, Cali./Riverside-Poly HS) led the Cobber offense with four shots on goal. The Tommies ended the game by outshooting Concordia 38-13. 

Johnson finished the game with 32 saves, while St. Thomas netminder Katie Jetland stopped 13 shots to pick up her first collegiate shutout. 

The two teams will finish the series tomorrow afternoon at 2:00pm at the Moorhead Sports Center. Concordia will then play at St. Ben's in a weekend series on January 30-31. 

1/10 Cobbers Struggle Again in 4-0 Loss to Wildcats.
           | St. Catherine 4, Concordia 0 | Action Picture Page |

(Moorhead, Minn.)-- Concordia struggled through a lost weekend as they dropped their second consecutive game to St. Kate's. The Wildcats shut down the Cobber attack for the entire 60 minutes and came away with a 4-0 win. The loss marks the second time that the Cobbers have been swept at home this season. Concordia opened the year with a pair of losses to St. Mary's.

Jamie Savage (Apple Valley, Minn./Rosemount HS) returned to the Cobber lineup, after sitting out the opening game of the series due to her recent bout with mononucleosis, and made 33 saves against the hard-charging Wildcat attack. St. Kate's goaltender Marie Benesh turned aside all 26 shots that the Cobbers were able to throw at the net. Benesh picks up her first collegiate shutout and first win of the season. 

Neither team was able to get on the scoreboard in the first period as both goalies refused to concede the lead. St. Kate's (2-7-1, 2-4-0) outshot Concordia in the period 13-8, and held the Cobbers from scoring on the only power play attempt of the period. St. Kate's was finally able to break through at the 4:16 mark of the second period. Nichole Hottinger scored the first goal of the game, and was one of four different players to score for the Wildcats. Michelle Bazzanella scored her first collegiate goal at 10:12 to stake St. Kate's to a 2-0 lead heading into the third period. 

Concordia (3-5-0, 2-4-0) was never able to mount a sustained attack on the Wildcat net. Sarah Robinson put the game out of reach when she scored at 8:20, and then Katie Eichten added an insurance goal at 17:15.

The Cobbers, who fell into a seventh place tie with St. Kate's,  will look to get back on the winning track when they host the South Dakota State club team on Friday, January 16 at 7:00pm. Concordia will return to action on the weekend of January 23-24 when they host defending league champion St. Thomas in a crucial two-game series.

1/9 Cobbers Can't Shake Off Month of Rust, Fall to St. Kate's 3-1.
           | St. Catherine 3, Concordia 1 | Action Picture Page |

(Moorhead, Minn.)-- Concordia struggled through two periods of play after not having played a game in 27 days and lost to St. Kate's 3-1. The Wildcats scored the first three goals of the game and held on in the third period to come away with their first victory of the season. Concordia fall to 2-3-0 in the MIAC and 3-4-0 overall.

St. Kate's (1-7-1, 1-4-0) got on the board less than eight minutes into the game when Angela M. Johnson scored her team-leading fifth goal of the year at the 7:52 mark. The Wildcats held the better of play in the opening period as they outshot the Cobbers 12-6 over the first 20 minutes. 

The second period played out much like the first. Concordia desperately tried to get their game legs under them, and St. Kate's was able to get the jump on almost every loose puck. One of the pivotal plays in the game came at the 2:07 mark when one of the the Wildcat defensman was called for freezing the puck in the crease. The referee awarded the Cobbers a penalty shot and the chance to tie the game. Jenei Estrada (Jr., Moreno Valley, Cali./Moreno Valley HS), who returned to the team after the Christmas break after missing the first half of the season, took the shot but was stopped by St. Kate's goalie Morgan Kane when she tried to slide the puck between her pads. 

The Wildcats took advantage of the increased momentum, and made the score 2-0 when Sarah Robinson broke free in front of the net and redirected the puck past Cobber goaltender Jenna Johnson (So., Wadena, Minn./Wadena-Deer Creek HS). It was Robinson's first collegiate goal. St. Kate's added to their lead four minutes later as Erin Thomas was able to wrist the puck past Johnson on the power play. The goal came at 7:29 of the middle frame and was Thomas' first goal of her college career. 

Concordia was able to gather some momentum late in the second period and were only outshot 12-11 for the second 20 minutes. 

The Cobbers stepped up their play in the final period but were forced to dig themselves out of too large of a hole. Concordia was finally able to get on the scoreboard, and break up Kane's bid for a shutout, when Lindsay Czarnecki (Jr., Riverside, Cali./Riverside-Poly HS) scored her team-leading seventh goal of the season at 16:48. It proved to be too little, too late as the Cobbers were stopped by Kane in the remaining three minutes of the game.

St. Kate's held a 36-32 advantage in shots for the game. Johnson, who was playing in place of Jamie Savage (Apple Valley, Minn./Rosemount HS) - who is recovering from a bout with mononucleosis, made 32 saves in the net for Concordia. Kane turned aside 31 of the 32 shots she faced in picking up her first win of the season.

The two teams will complete their two-game series tomorrow afternoon at noon at the Moorhead Sports Center. 

12/13 Cobbers Beat Michigan State 4-2.
           | Concordia 4, Michigan State 2 | Action Picture Page |

12/06 Cobbers Hammer Hamline 6-1 to Complete Weekend Sweep.
           | Concordia 6, Hamline 1 | 

12/05 Cobbers Roll Past Hamline 6-1.
           | Concordia 5, Hamline 1 | 

11/29 Cobbers Have Tables Turned and Lose 4-3 to Lake Forest (IL).
           | Concordia 4, Lake Forest (IL) 3 |

11/29 Cobbers Edge Lake Forest (IL) to Pick Up First Win of the Year.
           | Concordia 4, Lake Forest (IL) 3 |

11/23 Cobber Can't Find Net, Lose to St. Mary's 3-0.
           | Concordia 0, St. Mary's 3 | Action Picture Page |

11/22 Cobbers Fall to St. Mary's 2-1 in MIAC Opener.
           | Concordia 1, St. Mary's 2 | Action Picture Page |

11/06 Concordia Women's Hockey Preview for 2003-04 is Now Online. 
           | Complete 2003-04 Women's Hockey Preview |

Lindsay Kurtis will be looking to break the school's all-time scoring record in 2003-04.

For Kerry Norman and the rest of the Concordia womenâs hockey team, it will be a season of letting go of the past and looking towards the future. Like every successful team, or family, there comes a time when you have to struggle past the growing pains in order to reach a higher level. The Cobbers will find themselves having to replace three key players that acted as older siblings throughout the beginning of the womenâs program at Concordia. Gone are all-time scoring leader Katie Jacques, record-setting goaltender Shyla Wilson and defensive mainstay Sandra Rydén. In their place are a bunch of honed veterans and young players trying to show that they have what it takes to make Concordia a consistent, top three finisher in the MIAC.

In the past two seasons, Concordia has finished as high as second place, played in two consecutive MIAC tournaments and set school records in wins in both years. To continue to flourish in the ever-improving MIAC, the team will have to rely on the little sisters that have been content to sit by and watch through the good times. The talent level will be present for the Cobbers in 2003-04 but the key will be to find success in the early season and then avoid a lull in the dog days of February.

Returning to take the seats at the head of the table for Concordia are senior wing Lindsay Kurtis, junior center Lindsay Czarnecki and back-up goaltender Jamie Savage. 

Kurtis has already tallied 116 points in her first three seasons as a Cobber. She is on track to break Jacquesâ school record of 138 career points. However, she will have to learn how to play without Jacques, her scoring Siamese twin, who took most of the defensive pressure from the opposing teams and was able to free up valuable space in front of the goal. After Kurtis, the team will have to replace three of its next top five leading scorers. Returning for her sophomore season will be all-conference forward Bridgette Richter. Richter was seventh in the MIAC in scoring last year and finished third on the team in overall points. Norman will more than likely pair Kurtis and Richter on one line, which will leave Lindsay Czarnecki to captain the second line and provide a balanced scoring attack. Czarnecki had a breakout season in 2002-03. She was named to the MIAC All-Conference Honorable Mention Team and finished the year by scoring three goals in the last three games. 

After Kurtis, Richter and Czarnecki there is no other player on the current roster that has scored more than 10 points in a season. The infants of the team will be asked to more than just crawl around during the 2003-04 season. Touted as the diaper dandies of the crew are Brandi Dunn of Plano, Tex. and Hannah Impola of Brainerd, Minn. 

On defense, the Cobbers have the biggest set of hand-me-downs to fill. Gone is the sometimes-spectacular Rydén who was a mainstay with the team for the past five years. Her defensive partner Jenei Estrada is also missing from the opening day roster, however, she might make a return to the team after Christmas break. Her absence at the beginning of the year will leave matriarch Norman with only three defensemen with significant playing experience. Sophomores Kali Palmer and Samantha Gunning are the two most experienced returning blueliners. Both had solid first years and will be looking to take a big step forward in 2002-03. Junior Charity Hartzell will be counted on to add depth and experience. Like the forwards, the defense should have a pair of baby boomers. Marya Losinski of Cold Spring, Minn. and Ashley Mazur of Woodland Hills, Calif. will have to hit the ice flying if Concordia will have a chance to continue at the level they have been accustomed to in the past two years.

On paper, the goaltending situation looks a lot more frightening than it actually is. Of all the top players that will be replaced, the one that had the most promising understudy was netmider Shyla Wilson. Junior Jamie Savage has been groomed to take over the two-time All-MIACâs spot for the past year and a half. Last season Savage split the goaltending duties during the regular season and posted an impressive 2.42 goals against average and a .922 save percentage. Both numbers were better than those posted by Wilson. Savage was also a perfect 5-0 in games started last year and has a 6-1 mark over her first two seasons. 

If Norman can nurture her family of Cobbers at a slow, successful pace then the team has the capability of returning to the MIAC postseason and going farther than the league semifinals - a benchmark that has tripped the team up in the past two years. (More) 

7/20 Insurance, Returning Athlete, & 1st Year Participation Forms are Now Online.

4/09 Cobber Women's Hockey Schedule for 2003-04 Now Online.
         | Tentative 2003-04 Women's Hockey Schedule |