Junior forward Rachael Bona and sophomore forward Hannah Brandt were included as top-10 finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, which is given to the NCAA Division I top player, the USA Hockey Foundation announced Thursday.
Three finalists will be named March 6, and the winner will be awarded on March 22, the day before the NCAA national championship game.
Brandt, who was a top-10 finalist last season, is tied for first in the nation with 55 points. She leads the NCAA with 36 assists. Bona is right behind Brandt; she is third in the country with 52 points.
The other finalists for the award are Erin Ambrose (Clarkson), Brittany Ammerman (Wisconsin), Kelly Babstock (Quinnipiac), Christine Bestland (Mercyhurst), Sarah Lefort (Boston University), Emerance Maschmeyer (Harvard), Jamie Lee Rattray (Clarkson) and Jillian Saulnier (Cornell).
Last year, Gophers forward Amanda Kessel won the award. The other two finalists, Megan Bozek and Noora Räty, also played for Minnesota.
Wednesday, sophomore goaltender Amanda Leveille was given a WCHA weekly honor. She was named WCHA Defensive Player of the Week after posting two shutouts against Minnesota-Duluth and making 26 saves on the weekend. Leveille leads the nation in shutouts with 13. She is first in the nation among fulltime goalies with a .951 save percentage.
