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While our own coaches here at Hamline are seldom as animated as Mora was, we need not fear a caustic tirade coming from women’s hockey coach Garnett Asmundson. Why, you ask? The Pipers have clinched a playoff spot. This marks another “first” in what has been a season of firsts, streaks, and broken records.

Just recently, however, the team has dropped two of three. On the surface, it may seem that Hamline’s success is melting away. Nonetheless, a closer look reveals a few important details.

Hamline’s last three games have come against St. Thomas and UW-Eau Claire. The first two were played against the Tommies with the playoffs on the line. Never before, in 12 contests, had the Pipers beaten the Tommies. In fact the closest they had ever come was a four-point deficit. Here’s a stat: in the last five games against St. Thomas, Hamline had been outscored 63-4. The Pipers success against UW-Eau Claire has been similar. In six games, Hamline is 1-5, with the last two losses being 10-plus point deficits each. One can clearly see, then, that the Pipers were not facing off against anybody. In their game against Eau Claire, Hamline was defeated 0-4.

Hamline’s doubleheader against St. Thomas started out on the wrong foot. The Tommies jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after the first period. From there they would score three more goals before the Pipers would respond, on a power-play goal by sophomore Lindsay Eilertson. Hamline was able to outshoot St. Thomas in the first two periods, but did not capitalize in the opportunities. When it was all said and done, the Pipers had been defeated 7-1. This stood as their worst loss of the season.

To the casual fan it might seem as though Hamline was destined for another blowout in the second game. Thankfully, casual fans know nothing. The game recap goes fairly quickly. St. Thomas, with the aid of their hockey sticks, tried on 32 different occasions to hit the little black thing into the net. Sophomore goaltender Crystal Testolin stopped every one of those shots, a fine enough performance to merit MIAC Player of the Week. In the second period, junior forward Sara Mickelson scored her 19th (record-setting) goal of the season. Two minutes later, junior forward Emily Dusold scored an unassisted power-play goal to make it 2-0. Hamline hung on for the win, which clinched a playoff birth and represented their first-ever victory over St. Thomas.

Hamline seems poised to face off against St. Mary’s in their first-round playoff game tonight. Earlier this season they lost a home game against St. Mary’s 1-2, but were victorious the very next night on the road, winning big 6-1. When asked what the keys for success are, Testolin said, “For us to be successful I think we need to improve on playing the full 60 minutes. We have to head strong from the beginning. It’s a weakness that sometimes shows. We need to play for 60 minutes.”