Adrian College’s Lewicki and O’Sullivan
Sweep NCHA Women’s Hockey Weekly Honors
Adrian College senior Kristin Lewicki (F - Moundsville, W. Va.) is the NCHA Women’s Offensive Player of the Week and freshman teammate Kelly O’Sullivan (D - Inverness, Ill.) is the NCHA Women’s Defensive Player of the Week, the league office announced Tuesday.
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Lewicki earns her third NCHA Offensive Player of the Week honor this season after an impressive performance that led the Bulldogs to the first unbeaten and untied regular-season title (at 18-0-0) in NCHA history - the team’s third in a row. In a two-game battle against Lake Forest College that was going to determine the league champ, Lewicki was Adrian’s leading scorer with six points (4G/2A). She had the game-winning goal on Saturday, posting identical 2-1-3 stat lines in each victory.
O’Sullivan is the third different NCHA Defensive Player of the Week for the Bulldogs this season. She scored one goal and added three assists in the two-game series at Lake Forest. Her lone goal was the game-winner Friday and allowed the Bulldogs to claim their third consecutive regular season conference title.
With the Bulldogs on top, the Foresters finished in second place. Next up, the College of St. Scholastica earned the third seed and Marian University punched its ticket to the postseason with a 2-1 victory over St. Norbert College on a late goal, grabbing the final spot. The postseason opens Friday, with the two lower seeds (Sabres/Saints) playing at the two higher seeds (Bulldogs/Foresters) in a two-game series.
Adrian finished up a terrific regular season, with its 23-2-0 record earning the No. 2 spot in both national polls, as well as first-place votes in the USCHO.com poll. Lewicki is pacing the nation in scoring (26-31-57 points), while the team is first in the country in offense (5.76 gpg) and 12th in defense (1.52 gpg). The high-powered offense has the top three point scorers in the NCHA and four of the top five.
2016-17 NCHA WEEKLY TOP PERFORMERS
Alexia Klaas, St. Scholastica
In a weekend sweep of Finlandia, Klaas became the second player in program history to record hat tricks in back-to-back games. She finished with 11 points for the weekend. In Saturday’s win, she recorded a hat trick by the end of the first period.
Hannah Koniar, Marian
Koniar, a freshman, netted the game-winning goal in a 2-1 win over St. Norbert that earned Marian a berth into the NCHA Slaats Cup Playoffs.
Lindsey Strainis, Marian
Strainis stood on her head once more in the regular season posting 23 saves to lead the Sabres to a berth in the NCHA Slaats Cup Playoffs. Strainis only allowed one goal against SNC in a 2-1 victory for a .958 save percentage. The win marked the seventh time this season she has allowed less than two goals in a game.