Season Review
2007-08 REVIEW
Head Coach Rob Burke, in his second season as bench boss of the women’s hockey team, has led the squad to its third consecutive seven-win season and improved the team’s winning percentage from a year ago, posting a 7-12-3 overall record and 5-9-2 mark in league play. With his first recruiting class under his belt, Burke successfully meshed his newcomers with a talented group of returnees and highlighted the season with a return to the ECAC West postseason for the first time since 2003.
Buffalo State opened its season with eight home games, including three exhibition contests against Canadian junior teams. The Bengals kicked off their regular season with a non-conference win against Concordia College before dropping a pair of ECAC West games to RIT. The team traveled to Neumann and picked up a win and tie but dropped its next three of four games to close out the first half of the season. Buffalo State posted a winning record in January, with a win against non-conference opponent Adrian College and a pair of conference victories at Chatham. Despite losses to perennial powers Plattsburgh and Williams, the Bengals ended the regular season with identical 1-0 wins against Oswego to clinch their first playoff appearance in five years. And although the team gave it a valiant run, sixth-seeded Buffalo State fell to No. 3 Elmira and eventual ECAC West champion, 3-2, in the quarterfinal game.
Buffalo State will graduate some key talent, including former All-ECAC West honorees Mary Cohen (Ann Arbor, MI/Pioneer) and Shannon Anesetti (Canonsburg, PA/Canon-McMillan) along with this year’s leading scorer, Julie Ruszala (Cheektowaga/Lancaster). However, those that return are poised to continue on with the improvements the program has made up to this point and are eager to leave their own mark. Included in that group are nine underclassmen that contributed to the team’s point total this season, led by freshmen Mariah Fairgrieve (Ft. Erie, ON/Lakeshore Catholic) and Marissa McMullan (Haileybury, ON).
