ECACHL Athletes Prepare for Women's World Championship

ALBANY, N.Y. - The 2007 International Ice Hockey Federation Women's World Championship is right around the corner, and 13 ECAC Hockey League athletes are preparing for this year's event. Team USA has seven current of former league athletes on its roster for the upcoming championship, while Team Canada has six. This year's championship will take place April 3-10 in Winnipeg and Selkirk, Man.

Leading the way for the U.S. squad is three-time Olympian Angela Ruggiero, who is a Harvard graduate. Other Olympians include fellow Crimson Julie Chu and Caitlin Cahow, Dartmouth's Kristin King and Sarah Parsons, and Yale's Helen Resor.

Dartmouth's Tiffany Hagge was also named to the roster after a successful stint on the USA Select Team that competed at the Four Nation's Cup last fall. The league will also be represented behind the bench, as Yale head coach Hilary Witt is one of the National Team's assistant coaches.

Team Canada also features a number of Olympians, with five ECACHL athletes rejoining the national team. Dartmouth's Katie Weatherston and Gillian Apps return to Team Canada, as does Harvard's Jennifer Botterill and Sarah Vaillancourt. St. Lawrence's Gina Kingsbury also joins her Olympic teammates on this year's World Championship roster.

St. Lawrence could have a second representative on Canada's roster, as Annie Guay is currently listed as an alternate and is in training camp with the team.

ECACHL Selections to the U.S. National Team

Dartmouth (3)
Kristin King '02 (Fwd - Piqua, Ohio)
Sarah Parsons Fr. (Fwd. - Dover, Mass.)
Tiffany Hagge '06 (Fwd. - Minneapolis, Minn.)

Harvard (3)
Caitlin Cahow Jr. (Def. - Vinalhaven, Maine)
Julie Chu Sr. (Def. - Fairfield, Conn.)
Angela Ruggiero '04 (Def. - Harper Woods, Mich.)

Yale (2)
Helen Resor So. (Def. - Greenwich, Conn.)
Head Coach Hilary Witt (Asst. Coach with Team USA)

ECACHL Selections to the Canadian National Team

Dartmouth (3)
Gillian Apps Sr. (Fwd. - Unionville, Ont.)
Katie Weatherston Sr. (Fwd. - Thunder Bay, Ont.)

Harvard (2)
Jennifer Botterill' 03 (Fwd. - Winnipeg, Man.)
Sarah Vaillancourt So. (Fwd. - Sherbrooke, Que.)

St. Lawrence (2)
Annie Guay Sr. (Def. - Rouyn-Noranda, Que.)
Gina Kingsbury '04 (Fwd. - Rouyn-Noranda, Que.)

IIHF Women's World Championship Schedule
April 3-10 . Winnipeg & Selkirk, Man.

PRELIMINARY ROUND

Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Time (all times CST) - Game (Group) ... Arena - Location
7:30 p.m. -- Kazakhstan vs. USA (A) ... Selkirk Recreation Complex - Selkirk, Man.
7:30 p.m. -- Switzerland vs. Canada (B) .. MTS Centre - Winnipeg, Man.
4:00 p.m. -- Russia vs Sweden (C) ... MTS Centre - Winnipeg, Man.

Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Time (all times CST) - Game (Group) ... Arena - Location
7:30 p.m. -- China vs. Kazakhstan (A) ... Selkirk Recreation Complex - Selkirk, Man.
7:30 p.m. -- Germany vs. Switzerland (B) ... MTS Centre - Winnipeg, Man.
4:00 p.m. -- Finland vs. Russia (C) ... MTS Centre - Winnipeg, Man.

Thursday, April 5, 2007
Time (all times CST) - Game (Group) ... Arena - Location
7:30 p.m. -- USA vs. China (A) ... Selkirk Recreation Complex - Selkirk, Man.
7:30 p.m. -- Canada vs. Germany (B) ... MTS Centre - Winnipeg, Man.
4:00 p.m. -- Sweden vs. Finland (C) ... MTS Centre - Winnipeg, Man.

PLAYOFF ROUND
April 7-9 ... Teams TBD ... All games played at MTS Centre-Winnipeg, Man.

BRONZE MEDAL GAME
Tuesday, April 10, 3:30 p.m. CST ... played at MTS Centre-Winnipeg, Man.

GOLD MEDAL GAME
Tuesday, April 10, 7:30 p.m. CST ... played at MTS Centre-Winnipeg, Man.