Several of the players responsible for one of Clarkson University Women’s Hockey’s best seasons ever were recognized by ECAC Hockey for their efforts in leading the Golden Knights’ to the conference regular season co-championship.
Clarkson gained three of the conference’s major awards and placed five standouts on the league’s first three all-league teams and two on the all-rookie squad. The all-stars were announced Friday night at the ECAC Hockey Awards Banquet, held at Clarkson University’s Camp Atrium.
Freshman goaltender Shea Tiley headlined the awards for Clarkson, earning ECAC Hockey Goaltender and Rookie of the Year accolades.
A native of Owen Sound, Ont., Tiley led the league in goals against average (1.16), save percentage (.948), wins (16) and win% (.773) starting all 22 games in league play as a freshman to backbone the Knights to their second straight conference regular season title. Tiley posted six shutouts and played the second most minutes (1,291:18) in conference action. She closed out the regular season with 54 saves on 55 shots to backstop the Green and Gold to a pair of one-goal wins on the road at Dartmouth (2-1 OT) and Harvard (1-0) to clinch the ECAC Hockey Regular Season Championship. Tiley was named ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Month three times (October, December, February), conference Goaltender of the Month once (February), selected four times conference Goaltender of the Week, once as league Rookie of the Week and named nine times to weekly Honor Roll.
Joining Tiley on the ECAC Hockey All-Star First Team were juniors Renata Fast (Burlington, ONT) and Cayley Mercer (Exeter, ONT).
Fast overcame an injury at the start of the season and was a steady performer on the blueline, scoring 15 points on three goals and 12 assists through 21 ECAC Hockey contests. She posted the best plus/minus (+15) among Clarkson defenders.
The Golden Knights’ leading scorer and conference’s fourth top scorer, Mercer tied for league-lead in game-winning goals (5). She had a five-game scoring streak in late January through mid-February with six goals (four GWGs) and three assists for nine points to help keep Clarkson in contention for the ECAC Hockey Regular Season Title. Mercer was selected twice as ECAC Hockey Player of the Week and three times to league’s weekly Honor Roll.
Juniors Shannon MacAulay (Mt. Herbert, PEI) and Erin Ambrose (Keswick, ONT) were chosen as Third-Team All-Stars.
As Clarkson’s captain, MacAulay led the Knights to the ECAC Hockey Regular Season Title. She tied for ninth in the conference in goal scoring (10), tied for sixth in league power-play goals (3) and tied for 10th in game-winners (2). MacAulay was selected ECAC Hockey Player of the Month for October and named three times to conference weekly Honor Roll.
Ambrose averaged nearly a point per league game from the blueline with four goals and nine assists in 15 ECAC Hockey contests. She led Clarkson in conference power-play points and was sixth in the league (3-5-8) in only 15 games. Ambrose tied for sixth in ECAC Hockey in power-play goals (3). She was twice named to ECAC Hockey weekly Honor Roll.
Tiley and classmate Savannah Harmon (Downers Grove, IL) were selected to the All-Rookie Team.
Harmon led Clarkson’s freshman class in scoring and was tied for fourth in conference scoring from the blueline and also as a freshman with 15 points (5-10). She tied for the league lead in game-winners among freshmen with three and was the leading rookie defenseman in game-winners (3). Harmon tied for sixth in ECAC Hockey in power-play goals (3). She was twice voted ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week and named twice to league’s weekly Honor Roll.
Matt Desrosiers was voted ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year. Despite graduating three 100-point scorers, the program’s all-time winningest goaltender and the 2014 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner, along with losing two coaches from last year’s National Championship team, Desrosiers guided Clarkson to its second consecutive ECAC Hockey Regular Season Title with a 16-4-2 league mark. The seventh-year head coach is taking the Knights to their third straight ECAC Hockey semifinal appearance and the second straight showing at Cheel Arena.
