LAURA HALLDORSON
Game 519 | October 2, 1997 | Laura Halldorson, Mike Hebert, Cheryl Littlejohn
All three of the Gophers' largest women's sports added new coaches in 1996 and 1997. Laura Halldorson took over the new hockey program in 1996. The team started play in 1997 and finished 21-7-3 in its first season. Mike Hebert came from a successful program at Illinois to take over Gopher volleyball in 1996. Over the next 12 years his teams became a national power with a record of 301-lll. Things didn't work as well for Cheryl Littlejohn who took over the basketball program from Linda Hill-MacDonald in 1997 and went 29-81 before being fired four years later.
Game 560 | February 15, 2000 | Gopher Women's Coaches
Women's Athletic Director Chris Voelz introduced head coaches in three women's sports --basketball, hockey and gymnastics. Cheryl Littlejohn coached the basketball team from 1997-2001. Laura Halldorson launched the hockey program in 1996 and held the top job for the next 11 years. Husband and wife team, Jim and Meg Stephenson, came to Minnesota in 1982 and continued to coach the gymnastics team through the 2008 season.
Game 564 | April 27, 2000 | Gopher Women's Hockey National Champions
Compiling a record of 32-6-1, Laura Halldorson's 1999-00 team did something no other Gopher women's team had ever done before in winning the National Championship. Nadine Muzerall scored two goals in the title game against Brown University. Goaltender Erica Killewald was voted the Tournament MVP, and Winny Brodt was voted the WCHA Defensive Player of the Year.
Game 608 | October 17, 2002 | Laura Halldorson
Coming off a third-place finish in the NCAA Final Four the year before, Coach Halldorson's team made it back to the Final Four in 2002-03 and finished fourth, losing to Harvard and Dartmouth. Highlight of the season for the team was their move from Mariucci Arena into the new Ridder Arena, the biggest and best women's college hockey arena in the country. Ronda Curtin and Natalie Darwitz led the team, which was hampered by the mid-season loss of freshman star Krissy Wendell with a broken collarbone.
Game 645 | December 1, 2004 | Laura Halldorson
With all but four players returning from the 2003-'04 National Championship team, expectations were high for Coach Halldorson's hockey Gophers. The team did not disappoint its fans, finishing the season with a 36-2-2 record and a second consecutive national title. Natalie Darwitz, Krissy Wendell and Lyndsay Wall were named first team All Americans, and goalie Judy Horak made the second team. Wendell also won the 2005 Patty Kazmaier Award as the best player in women's college hockey.
Game 686 | December 5, 2006 | Laura Halldorson
Two years removed from their back-to-bad National Championships, Coach Halldorson's women's hockey Gophers finished third in the WCHA with a 23-12-1 record. Sophomore forward Gigi Marvin led the team in scoring and was named to the WCHA's first team. Bobbi Ross and Melanie Gagnon made the third team. At the end of the season Halldorson, the only coach in the program's 11-year history, announced she was stepping down. Her career record, including three National Championships, was 278-67-22.
Wikipedia: Laura Halldorson
