LONDON, Ont. - With first-year head coach Chris Higgins joining the rankings along with a score of talented freshmen, what was supposed to be a stronger year given the depth of returning players is even stronger for the Western Mustangs women’s hockey team.
The Mustangs are poised for a breakout year in 2010-11, after finishing just one point out of the playoffs last season, and they begin a new era with 11 new players joining the team this year.
New goalies Alison Li and Olivia Ross will challenge all-star goalie Jessica Ulrich for playing time between the pipes.
Ross comes to the team from the powerful Mississauga Chiefs of the Provincial Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). She sported a .962 save percentage, and a 0.98 goals against average and won the PWHL's top goalie award in 2009-10.
She is joined by walk-on goalie Alison Li from British Columbia. Higgins said Li turned a lot of heads in tryouts and will stay with the team this year as its third goalie.
On defence, the team has recruited three solid players with Tara Cation, Kaylee Kearns and Michelle Saunders. The trio is joined by another rookie blueliner, walk-on Sydney Kidd, to add depth to the blueline, which includes veterans Kailey Hooker, Meg Hewins and Ashlyn Karapalidis.
Cation recorded seven points in 31 league games and another four points in six playoff games for the of the Brampton Junior Thunder last year.
Kearns joins the team from the powerful Cambridge Junior Fury of the PWHL where she had two goals and 13 points in her final year. She was voted the most improved player on the Cambridge team and won her high school MVP honours.
Saunders, a multi-sports athlete, received a life-time athletic achievement trophy in 2010. In addition to her strong defensive play she recorded five goals and 13 points for the Brampton Thunder in 2009-10.
Kidd is from Trinity College and Higgins said she has strong skating skills, adding "her overall talent is a rare find in the highly recruited Ontario market."
Up front, captain Ellie Seedhouse leads a strong group of forwards including veterans Chantal Morais, Katie Dillon, Aoife Cox, Lindsay Gidomski, Brittany Buck, Lindsay Repath, Tawn Rellinger and Holly Ouellette.
Seedhouse, an OUA all-star last year, will be a good mentor for a number of forward-recruits including Emilie Canham (Etobicoke, PWHL), Marianne Filson (London, PWHL), Ally Galloway (Kitchener, PWHL) and Carly Rolph (Cambridge, PWHL).
The smooth-skating Canham brings energy and strong defensive play to the Mustangs. Her PWHL coach called her “the player he would keep above all others” if he was starting a new team.
Filson, a local London player, is a smart, play-making forward with tremendous upside potential. In 2010 she received an award from her high school as the most outstanding “career” female athlete.
In terms of speed, the acquisition of All Galloway is a major boost to the Mustangs. She was athlete of the year in both 2009 and 2010 at her high school and competed in soccer and rugby in addition to hockey. She had 15 points last year for the Kitchener Rangers PWHL team.
Carly Rolph is an elite, high-scoring forward from the Cambridge Fury. A fast skater, who her coach called a “thoroughbred,” Rolph finished 15th in PWHL league scoring last year (18 G, 21 A, 39 Pts) despite missing six games.
Another walk-on, Tayrn Brown, who played four years for the Ottawa Gee-Gees transferred to Western to take her master’s degree. Higgins says Brown is a strong skater who will add a veteran presence to the Mustangs.
“With the high-calibre recruits, and a fresh new approach to the team, this will be a turning point for the women's hockey at Western," says Ted Brown, returning for his third year as an assistant coach.
This year’s upcoming season is aptly expressed by Seedhouse who says she "can hardly wait.”
The Mustangs open the season on Oct. 8 against Windsor at 7:30 p.m. at Thompson Arena. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for non-Western students, seniors and youth. Western students receive free admission.
