Currently holding the No. 7 spot in the latest national polls and riding a six-game winning streak, the UW women’s hockey team will head to Ohio State this weekend to battle the unranked Buckeyes.
Other than its matchup with border rival Minnesota, this weekend’s series marks UW’s last before heading into postseason play.
Through its first 29 games, the Badgers have amassed an impressive 18-6-5 record and much of their success can be attributed to the play of senior defenseman and perennial All-American selection Kerry Weiland.
Weiland, who has been with the program since its induction in the 1999-00 season, has been a leader both on and off the ice for UW head coach Mark Johnson, and her efforts have not gone unnoticed.
“She is just a good player. She’s obviously had three good years here at Wisconsin and this being her last year, you want to go out and play your best hockey,” Johnson said. “When you have upperclassmen like Kerry, with the leadership that those people bring to the team, you usually end up having a pretty good season.”
Although she realizes the importance of this weekend’s series with OSU, Weiland has been looking forward to UW’s rematch with Minnesota and their star forward, Natalie Darwitz, for some time. Earlier this year, the Gophers, led by Darwitz’s three points in the series, swept the Badgers 3-1, 2-1 and next weekend UW will get its last shot at retribution before the WCHA postseason tournament.
“We’re definitely looking forward to the Minnesota series, but like coach has said, we have to take care of Friday night and Saturday night, first of all. Then we can look forward to Minnesota,” Weiland said. “We’ve got a lot of Minnesotan players on our team that are seniors, so it’ll be a big game … and our last home series.”
A native of Palmer, Alaska, Weiland has been involved with the game of hockey for as long as she can remember. In just her first few years of playing the sport, however, her atypical style of play had already earned her the nickname “Monkey,” which has stuck with her throughout her career.
“I used to be really hyper and jumpy, on and off the ice … not as hyper off the ice, but I think it still goes with the way I play: just kind of all over the place, jumpin,’ leapin’ and kind of getting myself in some awkward situations in the air,” Weiland said. “So it was kind of like ‘you’re a monkey’ and it has stuck since I was like 11 or 12.”
Weiland’s “all over the place” style of play recently sparked the interest of those selecting members to represent the U.S. in the upcoming 2003 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Women’s World Championship, as her name was added to the roster earlier this month.
The tournament, to be held April 3-9 in Beijing, China, represents a forum in which the world has an opportunity to showcase their most talented women’s hockey players. Weiland is one of seven defenders and one of 20 total players that were selected to represent the U.S. in the semi-annual tournament and she is excited for the opportunity to perform on the same ice as the best the world has to offer.
“Going over to Beijing will be an experience in itself, but just being on the national team … it’s the best of the best and I hope it’s just a good experience,” Weiland said. “It’s the world championships, so there will obviously be the world there. It’s an international thing … so it’ll be a great experience.”
Although she has played under a number of coaches over the course of her career, Weiland feels that Johnson, in his first year at UW, has had a profound impact on her game.
“He is a gentleman and he knows the game inside out. I wish I was a freshman. I wish I was here another three years,” Weiland said. “You just want to absorb as much knowledge as you can out of him … he’s like a great professor; you go to class and you just want to hear him talk, you know. He’s been great and he’ll be great for the program in the future, too.”
Had she chosen to attend another of the countless number of universities she was recruited by coming out of high school, coach Johnson and the fans of UW women’s hockey may have never received the privilege of seeing Weiland play. A few of the enticements that eventually made her choose Wisconsin as the place where she’d find her “niche” was the thought of starting a program and receiving a first-rate education.
“I think part of it was that I wanted to help establish a new program. You get to set a precedent and a new tradition,” Weiland said. “My top three choices were between UNH (University of New Hampshire), Minnesota and Wisconsin. And Wisconsin just felt like home … I could see myself living here for four to five years or however long it took me to graduate. It’s been the best thing; the fans are 100-percent behind you, there’s a great community here and it’s a great school. It has it all. It’s just a first-class university.”
The fans of UW have reaped the benefits since Kerry Weiland decided to choose Wisconsin as her college of choice. And they will get one last chance to see “Monkey” lace up her skates as a Badger, when UW plays the Minnesota Golden Gophers Feb. 28 and March 1 in Madison’s Capitol Ice Arena.
