[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 38 (Thursday, March 30, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E471]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            HONORING UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN WOMEN'S HOCKEY

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                           HON. TAMMY BALDWIN

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 30, 2006

  Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the University of 
Wisconsin women's hockey team, which on March 26 defeated the Gophers 
of the University of Minnesota 3-0 to claim the 2006 NCAA national 
championship. This is the first national championship won by the Badger 
women's hockey team, and in fact it is the first NCAA championship for 
any UW women's team since 1985. This also marks the first Division I 
women's hockey title won by a school outside the State of Minnesota.
  The championship victory was a fitting end to an amazing year for the 
Badgers, which included a record 36 victories and a Patty Kazmeier 
National Player of the Year Award winner in junior forward Sara Bauer. 
The final game was also UW's fifth victory of the season in six games 
against the archrival Gophers, a team that had dominated the Badgers in 
years past.
  For Badgers coach Mark Johnson, this accomplishment can stand beside 
his greatest as a player, including the 1977 NCAA men's championship 
and the ``Miracle on Ice'' 1980 Olympic gold medal. In each of his 4 
years as head coach, the Badgers have set a school record for 
victories, showing steady improvement on the way to this year's 
ultimate prize.
  Coach Johnson's players, of course, deserve the bulk of the credit 
for their own success. And during this year's tournament, no Badger 
star shone brighter than goaltender Jessie Vetter. A freshman from 
Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, Jessie allowed one goal during three 
tournament games. Prior to this year, no goalie had ever recorded a 
shutout during the women's Frozen Four. Jessie earned two, in the semi-
finals and the championship. It is no surprise, then, that she was 
named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
  It is, however, not an individual honor but the accomplishment of a 
team that I wish most to recognize today. Some of the players joked 
after the game that they had now stolen away from their neighbors to 
the west the title of ``the State of Hockey.'' Wisconsin couldn't be 
prouder.

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