When the Penn women's club ice hockey team beat last season's undefeated Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey Conference champion, Delaware, 10-1, Nov. 7, 2008, it was apparent something big was in store.
The Quakers (13-1) will head to the Division II Women's Hockey National Championship in Rochester, N.Y., March 13-15. The American Collegiate Hockey Association extended an invitation to the Red and Blue Feb. 18 when the team received a No. 2 ranking in the Association's final ranking of the season. The top two teams from both the Division II West and East regions were invited to attend.
"We've been focusing on this since we found out it was a possibility that we could be going," senior captain Rachel Skalina said. "We've really been working towards this."
Skalina and her assistant captain, senior Hillary Kaplan, both got involved in ice hockey after spending time figure skating when they were young. This will be the tandem's only trip to the National Tournament in their four years of collegiate hockey - the last time the Quakers received an invitation was 2003.
However, there has been a progression of talent since Skalina and Kaplan first took the ice for Penn. Many of the current underclassmen had years of hockey experience before arriving at Penn.
"We have a generally very experienced group of girls," Skalina said. "Earlier [in] my freshman and sophomore years, we had had girls that hadn't played before college or in their senior year of high school."
In addition to a more seasoned squad, Skalina and Kaplan have cited new head coach Pete Rothman as a key contributor to this season's success.
"We've had a different coach every year I've been here for the past few years," Skalina said. "But [Rothman] has been really reliable and really great, so hopefully he will stick around for a while."
Although Skalina has primarily played defense this season, she has been a threat offensively as well, tallying seven assists and a goal. Her versatility will be a huge asset to the squad when they take to the ice over spring break.
In addition, goalie Sara Heinze, who is a former Penn varsity field hockey goalie, has two shutouts under her belt this season. Heinze has only allowed 37 goals to the Quakers' 121 goals scored, 50 of which have come from forward Anne Rosen, who tops the division in points.
According to the team's designated press correspondent Audrey Farber, the Quakers have played a "fairly easy season." Within the DVCHC, the Quakers easily defeated Delaware, West Chester, American and Maryland and suffered only one loss to Virginia.
The competition in New York, however, will be stiffer. The Quakers will be facing Rainy River Community College and the College of St. Scholastica, which both represent the West Region, as well as East Region No. 1 Northeastern, in a round-robin style tournament.
"It's obviously a really great experience, playing teams that are probably going to be a lot stronger than we are," Farber said. "Getting the opportunity and giving our younger players the motivation to try to get here again is really exciting."
According to Skalina, the Quakers will need to use the defensive experience they gained during playoffs in order to succeed at the tournament.
Regardless of the team's performance in New York, the trip is definitely a step in the right direction for the program.
"Hopefully we'll have a really great time at Nationals and hopefully we'll know what we need to work on as a team in the future," Skalina said.
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