Mleczko, Two Teammates, in Running for Kazmaier Award

Three players on the No. 1 Harvard women's hockey team were among the 10 candidates for the 1999 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award for player of the year nominated by the USA Hockey Foundation Feb. 8.

USA Hockey will announce the three finalists March 15. The winner will receive the award March 25 in St. Paul, Minn., the night before the American Women's College Hockey Alliance Championship Tournament semifinals at the University of Minnesota.

Co-captain A.J. Mleczko (27 g, 67 a) is the odds-on favorite to win the Kazmaier Award. In addition to the records she has broken (see related story this page), and the fact that she is leading the nation in scoring this season, Mleczko has consistently broken down every opposing defense in the league. Taking advantage of her explosive teammates, she has distributed 26 more assists than anyone else in the country, and has scored at least one point in every game this year.

Mleczko's U.S. Olympic teammate, defenseman Angela Ruggiero (17, 32), is the only freshman Kazmaier nominee. She has scored 12 more points than any other defenseman in the country, but her imposing presence on the ice is even more valuable than her scoring ability. She can shut down prolific scorers and disrupt the breakaway, and she is not afraid to go to the penalty box (her 28 penalties account for 20.7 percent of Harvard's penalty minutes).

Mleczko's linemate, sophomore winger Tammy Shewchuk (40, 41), is Harvard's third Kazmaier nominee. Playing alongside the nation's two assist leaders (Mleczko and freshman winger Jen Botterill), Shewchuk has lit the lamp eight times more than any other player. She is a fast, aggressive skater who can create her own shots in transition and is devastating from anywhere between the circles.

Rounding out the nominees are UNH defenseman Nicki Luongo and forward Carisa Zaban, Brown defenseman Tara Mounsey and goaltender Ali Brewer, Providence goaltender Sara DeCosta, Northeastern forward Hillary Witt and Princeton forward Ali Coughlin.