She's Back and Better Than Ever

The Harvard women's hockey team sure is glad to have sophomore forward Tammy Shewchuk back in a Crimson uniform.

Although she had not played a game at the Bright Hockey Center in more than a year, Shewchuk looked more than comfortable on Harvard's home ice, pouring in five goals and four assists in No. 3 Harvard's blowout victories over No. 8 Cornell and St. Lawrence last weekend.

In a weekend that saw 14 Harvard goals and five Crimson players making the ECAC Honor Roll, Shewchuk led Harvard's vaunted offensive attack. On the Crimson power play unit that features three Olympians and the player that holds Harvard's single-season scoring record, it was Shewchuk who capitalized on the man advantage with four power play goals.

"We have a lot of players that can put the puck in the net, possibly more than a lot of other teams in the country," said sophomore forward Angie Francisco, who assisted one of Shewchuk's power play goals. "I don't play on her line, but I think Tammy Shewchuk is easily one of the best finishers in college hockey right now."

Francisco currently holds the single-season scoring mark after breaking Shewchuk's previous record last season. But the only question for 1998-99 is how many Crimson players will break the current record.

Shewchuk certainly should be one of those players. Her tenacity for the puck and her ability to reel off shot after shot paid off last weekend, when her nine-point performance vaulted her into a tie for second place in the ECAC in scoring and pushed her team into a tie for fourth place in the conference.

When Harvard coach Katey Stone moved her into the top line alongside co-captain A.J. Mleczko and freshman forward Jen Botterill against St. Lawrence, Shewchuk responded with an impressive display of stickwork to find open shots and aggressive rebounding that led to the first hat trick of the season for a Crimson player.

Shewchuk took last year off to try out for the Canadian Olympic team, and she was one of the final cuts. The extra conditioning has made her an even better skater and shooter and Harvard fans are lucky they have three more seasons to watch her play.

So far this season, Shewchuk has been the most productive scorer on what is perhaps the most talented team in Harvard women's hockey history. Time will tell if this really is the best team to suit up in Crimson uniforms, but there is no question that Tammy Shewchuk is The Crimson's Athlete of the Week.