The members of the University of Wisconsin-Superior women's hockey team have earned All-American honors from American Hockey Coaches Association.
Freshman Dani Schultz (Morris, Minn.) received CCM First Team All-American status following her first season, one in which she was named First Team All-NCHA and NCHA Player of the Year. Junior defender Kaiti Graham (Middleville, Mich.) and sophomore goaltender Shanley Peters (Gnadenthal, Manitoba) received CCM Second Team All-American honors. The two second teamers were also First Team All-NCHA selections 2011-12.
"We've been very lucky over the years to have a number of very good players be named All-American. These three players, with their outstanding performance add to that strong tradition," UWS coach Dan Laughlin said. "There are only 12 players in each region who make the All-American team, so this is a very big deal. They were all so good and so consistent for us this year. I'm proud of them. They truly deserve to be able to be called All-Americans."
Schultz took the NCHA by storm in her first year, leading the team and the conference in goals with 23. Her total also had her among the top goal scorers in the nation. The leading point-getter on the team, Schultz was just the third freshman in NCHA history to be named player of the year.
"She did everything we expected and then some. She's such a hard worker in every phase of the game. The time and effort she put in really came through as the year went on," Laughlin said. "There were times where we were struggling as a team, but Dani just kept doing her thing. She got us through some of those tough times with her ability to put the puck in the net and spark our offense."
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Schultz was the only NCHA player to be named to the first team.
Graham developed into a top-flight, all-around defender for the Yellowjackets. Relied upon to shut down opponents, Graham was also the top scoring defender on the Yellowjackets. Meanwhile Peters ranked among the top goaltenders in the NCHA and the nation. Her selection is all the more remarkable when you consider she only played in just over half of the Yellowjacket games.
"We've always taken a great deal of pride in our team's ability to defend well. These two are a big part of that," Laughlin said. "Kaiti just does so many things well. You aren't afraid to put her on the ice in any situation. And Shanley is one of the best goaltenders in the country. There isn't a lot more that you can say about her and what she brings to our team. We have a lot of confidence in her and what she does, and she allows us to take some risks because we know we have her back there to bail us out if we make a mistake."
The trio joins Lindsay Carlson (2002), Melanie Salatino (2002), Erin Kegley (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007), Rikki Nespor (2006), Kirsti Hakala (2008), Gina Baranzelli (2008) and Melissa Kunzelman (2010) as Yellowjacket women's hockey players to earn All-American status.
