Once again the Williams College Ephs served as executioner for the women’s hockey team’s season. After the Ephs elimination of the Cardinals for the past two seasons in the first round, the Cards hoped for a different result. Unfortunately, the result would prove no different than previous ones. With a guillotine-like efficiency, the Ephs punished Wesleyan 8-0 and ushered the team off the ice and into the off-season without mercy.
All that Wesleyan had left were the memories of a successful year and dashed dreams of what might have been.
“It would have been awesome to beat Williams and go on to Bowdoin,” said Captain Tasha Clauson ’04. “So in that sense the game was disappointing. But we played hard and had a lot of fun out there.”
Just by looking at the box score, it is noticeable what the problem was for the Cardinals. In fact, that problem had been there the entire season: inability to score goals. There were few games this year in which the Cards out-shot their opponents, and in this game they faced that all too familiar problem. Williams held a commanding lead throughout the game not only in shots, but goals. After falling behind 4-0 barely ten minutes into the game, the team’s fate was sealed.
“We started out slow in the first period,” said Andrea Snow ’04. “Being down 5-0 after a period was disappointing, but the next two periods we played much better.”
Clauson shared similar feelings towards Wesleyan’s inauspicious beginnings.
“The first period is what proved to be our downfall,” Clauson said. “We had some big mistakes and that killed us. After the first period, we settled down a little bit and started having some fun out there.”
The disappointment of the season’s final game should not take away from some of the more impressive individual accomplishments of the team. Anna Siliciano ’05 led the team with 27 points, averaging more than 1 point per game, leaving her tied for tenth in the NESCAC scoring race. Also, Clauson provided veteran experience in the back as she anchored a defense that was under a constant barrage of pressure from other teams.
Both Clauson and Snow reflected on their season as being one of uniform uncertainty over the team’s play.
“I wouldn’t say that the season was either a success or a failure,” Snow said. “We had some great weekends and then some crappy ones. So it was more of a fair season.”
“It was a good season, but also a really hard one,” Clauson said. “We had so many ups and downs that it seemed like every time we would win a few games, we’d take a step back and then lose a few. But it was a lot of fun, too. You get to hang out with your best friends every day and play hockey.”
The team ended the season with a 9-16-1 record, 6-9-1 in the NESCAC. With the graduation of only 3 seniors and a solid core of returning players, the team will be poised to improve on that record next season.
“This team was really small, so while it was hard in terms of conditioning and practicing, everyone got a chance to play,” Clauson said. “With that experience, next year’s team has the chance to be really good.”
The next step for the seniors is realizing that their hockey careers have come to an end.
“It’s a weird concept that I’m not going to be playing competitive hockey anymore,” Snow said. “It hasn’t really hit me yet that it was my last game. Overall, there have been a lot of ups and downs during my time here. It wasn’t a complete success, though I doubt that it is in anyone’s career.”
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