Finalists Named for League’s Best Defensive Forward Award
ALBANY, N.Y. -- ECAC Hockey today announced the finalists for
the 2012 Women’s Best Defensive Forward Award. Reagan
Fischer, Dartmouth, Alisa Harrison from Rensselaer and
Cornell’s Chelsea Karpenko have each been nominated as
finalists for the honor by the League’s coaches.
One of the all-around leaders for Dartmouth, Reagan Fischer
continued to develop into a solid player at both ends of the ice
for the Big Green during her senior campaign in Hanover. The Irma,
Alberta native was the player who the Big Green counted on to be
the responsible center. She was a +25 on a team that did not
overpower teams with its scoring. Her five-on-five and penalty-kill
play defensively was exceptional all season. She also had 14
blocked shots in conference play. Fischer ranked second on the team
in goals (10) and third (21) in points in conference action. She
scored three game-winning goals and one shorthanded goal as
well.
A mainstay and key component on both Rensselaer’s power-play
and penalty-kill units, Alisa Harrison has been a reliable player
appearing in every game (141) for the Engineers since arriving in
Troy in 2008-09. Harrison, the team’s captain, finished third
on the team in scoring; ranked second overall in total assists; led
the team in total shots (99); and recorded the most blocked shots
among the team’s forwards (21). Harrison also posted
second-best plus/minus on the team (+4). She was penalized just
seven times on the season. She was named ECAC Hockey Player of the
Week (10/4/11).
Rounding out the finalists is Chelsea Karpenko, a senior, who led
the Big Red with six power-play goals this season and also netted
three game-winners. She scored (0.90) points per game this year in
conference action, and her six power-play points put her in the top
20 in power-play scoring in league-play. Karpenko's plus-15 was
also good enough to place her in the upper tier among her
counterparts in the conference plus/minus category. On the
defensive side, Karpenko is a physical player who rarely lets
opposing forwards get past her. She blocks shots regularly and was
part of a Cornell roster that gave up a league-low 28 goals this
year.
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