The women’s hockey team competed at home in its last two games of the season, falling to Colby College on Friday and Saturday.
The first game started out promising with two Wesleyan goals in the first 10 minutes. Unfortunately, those were the only goals scored for the Cards all weekend, as the women were downed 4-2 and 4-0.
Assisted by Jaime Wendel ’07 and Amanda Nickels ’08, Jenna Bonczewski ’06 scored her first goal of the season eight minutes into the first period on Friday. Two minutes later, the leading Cardinals scorer, Hannah Jackson ’09, rushed in and with a quick flip of her wrist, scored her ninth and final goal of the season. However, Laura Anning of Colby scored the first of four unanswered goals with a score near the end of the first period. Colby continued to rack up points on the scoreboard, scoring once during the second period and twice in the final period.
Hilary Schreiber ’09 started in goal and finished the game with an impressive total of 30 saves, but the Cards were unable to prevail against a tough Colby squad.
Jackson finished her first hockey season as a Cardinal with an impressive 12 points, including her nine goals and three assists. Julia Kazmers ’08, who ended the season with a total of one goal and three assists, assisted on Jackson’s goal.
“We went into the games with nothing to lose and just tried to play our last hockey games for ourselves and for our seniors,” Jackson said. “They were close games, and our seniors played with a lot of heart and leadership.”
Saturday was senior night, where fellow players, friends, and families congratulated the three seniors on their last hockey season at Wesleyan. Captain Jessica “Punisher” Pearce ’06 demonstrated excellent leadership and confidence throughout the season. Seniors Jenna “Battleaxe” Bonczewski ’06 and Emily “Terror” Titterton ’06 proved to be strong assistant captains alongside Pearce.
“My overall outlook of the season was positive,” Bonczewski said. “There were many very talented freshmen and the team made a lot of progress as the season went on. Our record really doesn’t reflect our skill level. The team is the greatest group of people I’ve ever met and I love them.”
The players eagerly skated onto the ice on Saturday, ready to play for their seniors. Although the Mules almost doubled the Cardinals in shots on goal, Wesleyan nearly doubled Colby in saves. Despite coming back from an injury, NESCAC’s top goaltender Rachel Stemerman ’09 lived up to her name once again with 42 saves. Stemerman, who has gathered a total of 717 saves this season with an average of 35.9 per game, holds the NESCAC’s highest save percentage with a remarkable .924. She broke Emma DeSimone’s ’01 previous school records of 32.5 saves per game (’99-’00) and a .922 save percentage (’97-’98).
“I wouldn’t have played if I didn’t feel over 90 percent better,” Stemerman said. “The team was very supportive through it all. They did an amazing job of bringing the freshmen into the team and keeping the girls together through all the tough times. We’re all going to miss them very much.”
Despite an unimpressive record of 2-19-2 (2-12-1 NESCAC), the Cardinals had a few bright spots. Adrienne Shea ’08 ranked second on the team in points and concluded her second Wesleyan season with five goals and six assists, and 11 points. Right behind her was Jessica Fischer ’08, with four goals, four assists and eight points.
“We didn’t have the best record but I feel like the love of the game made up for that,” Titterton said. “Being a part of the team has meant a lot to me and regardless of our record, I was inspired every day with my teammates’ dedication and spirit. I will miss hockey a lot, and most of all the team bonding, like the group showers and the hockey butt, because you can’t find a bond like that anywhere.”
Pearce also reflected on the team’s season and offered a piece of advice for her younger teammates.
“[Playing hockey] is a very valuable experience, so don’t ever take it for granted,” she said. “Cherish every moment you have on the ice with the team, because when it’s over, it’s really over.”
Stemerman remained optimistic about next year despite the squad’s disappointing record.
“We had a tough time finishing the season, because near the end we lost a lot of very close games,” she said. “So next year, one of our goals is to win those close games, because I know we have the ability to. We are also aiming toward beating out Williams and winning Little Threes.”
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