ST. PAUL — St. Thomas is entering its third season as a Division I program this fall and it seems like 2023-24 could be the best season yet for UST.
The Tommies finished in last place in the WCHA for its inaugural D-I season with an overall record of 5-27-1 and then improved to finishing in seventh place in 2022-23 with a record of 8-27-1. It seems like there has been a steady pace of improvement for the Twin Cities-based team, especially as UST has started to recruit some top-tier talent in it's home state. Indoor Baby Play Center
Can St. Thomas make a push to finish higher in the WCHA this upcoming season with a star-studded incoming freshman class ready to hit the ice?
This offseason, St. Thomas lost five forwards on its roster. Anna Promersberger, Gabby Billing and Anna Solheim all are out of NCAA eligibility, while Maija Almich graduated and Jenna Hartung transferred to Franklin Pierce.
Billing and Promersberger transferred into St. Thomas while Almich, Solheim and Hartung had been there since its Division III era. Combined, those five skaters produced 36 points last season — and UST only scored 112 total over the entire year — so that's a fairly significant number (32%).
With the Tommies leading scorer in 2022-23 (Maddy Clough) only netting 13 points in 36 contests, it's clear that St. Thomas needs some scoring firepower — and it's bringing in exactly that this season with a group of very talented freshmen. Six of the seven freshmen forwards played Minnesota high school hockey this past year.
One of the most exciting prospects joining the UST team this fall is Minnesota Ms. Hockey award winner Ella Boerger. The 5-foot-7 forward from Andover played four years of varsity hockey with the Huskies and had a massive 223 points over her career. She had 41 goals in just 29 contests in 2022-23 and can certainly put the puck in the back of the net. Andover won the Class AA state tournament in 2020 and 2022, while the squad finished in second place in 2021 and 2023.
Also joining the Tommies this year is Boerger's teammate, Madison Brown. The 5-foot-9 skater had 108 points in two seasons for the Bismarck Blizzard in eighth and ninth grade before moving to Minnesota where she then posted 136 points over three seasons with Andover. Boerger and Brown will be a dynamic offensive duo that the Tommies can utilize right away.
Speaking of dynamic, one of the most dazzling players joining the team this fall is Rylee Bartz. The 5-foot-7 forward had a ridiculous 177 points in three seasons for Fargo North/South before transferring to Warroad for her senior year where she led the entire state of Minnesota in scoring with 59 goals and 48 assists over just 30 games. The Warriors won the Class A state title in 2023. She was a top-10 Ms. Hockey finalist that year as well.
It's hard to beat the stats of skaters like Boerger and Bartz, but you can't leave out Cara Sajevic as a player to watch. The 5-foot-4 forward had 197 points over three seasons with Gentry Academy, who won the 2023 Class AA state title. Sajevic impressively led the Stars in scoring every year that she was on the team and she will likely be one of the skaters that can contribute right away for St. Thomas.
The other three incoming freshmen forwards are Keara Parker, Abby Garvin and Maddy Helmstetter.
Garvin captained Benilde-St. Margaret's this past season and netted 32 points over four varsity seasons with the Red Knights. Helmstetter appeared in three seasons at Minneapolis, posting 88 points there, before enrolling at Holy Family where she scored 57 points over four years with the Fire.
Parker is the only skater that didn't play in Minnesota last season. The 5-foot-7 forward from Winnipeg had 37 points (17G, 20A) with RINK Hockey Academy Kelowna in 2022-23.
The top three returning forwards for UST are senior Brieja Parent, junior Lauren Stenslie, and graduate student Alyssa Monrean. Those three players will have an increased role this year as skaters that can bring some veteran experience to lines that will likely be peppered with a lot of freshmen faces.
Despite a bit of turnover on offense, St. Thomas doesn't have too many changes to its blue line this season.
UST loses senior Emma Larson to graduation. She played two seasons at the Division III level with the Tommies before their DI transition. She posted just four points over the past two seasons but logged over 60 games. The other defender who won't be returning is Lotti Odnoga, who is out of NCAA eligibility. Odnoga transferred to UST after four years at Dartmouth and posted five points over 34 contests in 2022-23.
For incoming blueliners, the Tommies bring in one transfer and two freshmen. The transfer is Rachel Golnitz, who spent the past two years at Colgate. She is a native of Forest Lake, Minnesota, and had a promising high school career with the Rangers. At Colgate, she registered just two assists but appeared in 67 games so she'll bring quite a bit of college hockey experience to the roster. At 5-foot-8 she's got some good size, too.
The first of the two incoming freshmen on defense is Ellah Hause. Hause competed in five varsity seasons at Hill-Murray High School and had a personal best season in 2022-23 with 19 goals and 25 assists over 23 games. She was a top-five finalist for the prestigious Minnesota Ms. Hockey award. Along with those honors, she also wore the red, white and blue as she competed for Team USA at the 2023 U18 Women's World Championships with a squad that won a bronze medal.
The second incoming freshman defender is Laine DeVries. She brings a whopping six years of varsity experience to the table after a long career at Chisago Lakes. She netted 72 points over her time with the Wildcats and made a Class A state tournament appearance in 2021. The 5-foot-6 defender was also captain of her team.
Some returners on 'D' that fans can get excited about are Maddy Clough, Haley Maxwell, and Nicole Vallario.
Clough led the team in scoring (6G, 7A) as just a sophomore last year, Maxwell had a strong freshman season, and Vallario has a bunch of national team experience with Switzerland that she can bring to the table as a junior.
Senior Alexa Dobchuk has graduated and standout sophomore netminder Saskia Maurer is playing professionally in her home country of Switzerland this season. This leaves just Maggie Malecha on the list of returning goalies.
Malecha saw limited time as a freshman in 2022-23, but looked good in the minutes that she played. She earned the 2022 Senior Goaltender of the Year award while playing for Northfield (Minn.) High School the year prior, so she has shown in the past that she can come up big time when needed for her team.
Joining Malecha this year are two older netminders in transfers Calla Frank and Olivia King. Frank is transferring in from Minnesota State where she saw plenty of action over the last three years. The native of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, most recently posted a .892 save percentage for the Mavericks over 26 games in 2022-23. King is transferring in from the University of Minnesota where she really hasn't seen much time in the crease.
It wouldn't be surprising if goaltenders are rotated early on in the season to see who takes the starting position.
Joel Johnson is back as head coach of the team alongside assistant coaches Bethany Brausen and Marty Sertich.
Commercial Soft Play Equipment The Tommies have already won their exhibition game against Durham West, but the season officially starts on Sept. 29 and 30 with a pair of home games against Franklin Pierce.