Faucher, Stockdale Major Awards Highlight NEWHA Haul for Women’s Ice Hockey
WINTHROP, Mass. (March 1, 2022) -- Fresh off earning a share of the New England Women's Hockey Alliance regular-season title for the first time over the weekend, the Franklin Pierce University women's ice hockey team had a banner day on the awards front on Tuesday. The Ravens now boast the NEWHA Goaltender of the year in sophomore Suzette Faucher (Middleton, Wis.), as well as the NEWHA Coach of the year in David Stockdale, in addition to four All-NEWHA selections, including a trio of First Team picks.
In addition to the two major awards, Faucher, junior Stefanie Caban (Fitchburg, Mass.) and sophomore Emilie Prive (Morrisville, Vt.) were all named to the All-NEWHA First Team, while graduate student Katerina Dajia (Aurora, Ontario) landed on the All-NEWHA Second Team. Furthermore, freshman Geno Hendrickson (Warroad, Minn.) earned a spot on the league's All-Rookie Team, while senior Bridget Fagan (Millis, Mass.) was Franklin Pierce's representative on the All-Sportswomanship Team.
It marked the fifth and sixth major conference-level awards in the history of the program. Faucher becomes the second Raven to earn Goaltender of the Year honors, joining Shannon O'Neil '17, who was lauded by the New England Hockey Conference in 2016-17. For Stockdale, it marks his first-ever Coach of the Year accolade.
Caban is the only one of the bunch who is now a multiple-time NEWHA honoree, as she was selected to the All-Rookie Team in 2019-20.
Faucher has posted numbers which put her among the country's elite goaltenders. She is the national leader in save percentage, at .957, with 400 saves against 418 shots, and ranks second in the country in goals-against average at 1.11. Unsurprisingly, Faucher leads the NEWHA in both categories, and her 13-2-1 record is good enough to lead the league in winning percentage as well (.844). She has posted six shutouts in 15 starts this season.
Stockdale has guided the team to its first-ever regular season title this winter, as the Ravens have posted a 20-9-1 overall mark, which includes a 16-4-0 record in NEWHA play. It is the fourth overall, and third straight, 20-win season for the program, which was highlighted by a program-record 11-game winning streak from Dec. 11 through Feb. 19. In typical fashion, Stockdale's squad has been nearly invincible on home ice this season, to the tune of a 12-1-1 record, with the lone tie coming against Hockey East member New Hampshire, and the loss coming to ECAC member Dartmouth. Franklin Pierce is 83-30-4 in 117 all-time games on home ice (.726 winning percentage).
Caban has been rock-solid on the blue line for a squad which leads the NEWHA in goals-against average, by a wide margin, at 1.76. She has played in all 30 games for the Ravens and contributed 11 points, on one goal and 10 assists, all while recording only six penalty minutes. She has recorded 72 shots and is +16, which ranks fifth on the team.
Prive, the team's second-leading scorer, is one of four Ravens in the top-10 in the NEWHA in scoring, as her 22 points (10-12-22) rank ninth in the league. She has a pair of game-winning goals along the way, leads the team in shots (95), and is +17.
Dajia has been another solid piece on the blue line for the Ravens, in her lone year with the team after spending her undergraduate career at Dartmouth. Often paired with Caban, Dajia leads the team and is second in the NEWHA in plus/minus, at +20. Offensively, she has contributed 11 points on three goals and eight assists, including two power-play goals and one game-winner.
Hendrickson missed some time on the back half of the year, but centered either the first or second line for most of her 22 appearances this season. She chalked up 10 points along the way (4-6-10), including one power-play tally and a pair of game-winning goals.
Fagan, an alternate captain for the Ravens, has seen the ice in 25 games this winter, and was assessed just one minor penalty along the way. She has recorded nine shots on goal.
All the award winners, and the rest of the Ravens, have a first-round bye in this week's NEWHA Tournament, and will host the semifinal and final rounds on Friday and Saturday at Jason Ritchie Ice Arena. The semifinals are set for 3 and 7 p.m. on Friday, with Franklin Pierce scheduled to play in the 3 p.m. contest.