The numbers say it all: a third national championship in four years, just two losses in the entire season, four team members (and their head coach) selected for the U.S. national hockey team and a Patty Kazmaier Award for Wisconsin senior goaltender Jessie Vetter.
This was not simply the best team in college hockey; it may have been the best team in the history of the Wisconsin women's hockey program. Vetter and the team's other five graduating seniors will leave the program as one of the most successful classes in school history. They have also laid the foundation for a group of young players to begin a new era of dominance for the Badgers.
Even after their season ended, four team members—Vetter, team captain and senior Erika Lawler, junior Meghan Duggan and sophomore Hilary Knight—and head coach Mark Johnson continued their strong play with Team USA. The national team took gold medals in the International Ice Hockey Federation women's world championship in Hämeenlinna, Finland.
The 2009-'10 season will be interesting to watch for Wisconsin. Between seniors graduating, head coach Mark Johnson leading the U.S. Olympic team in Vancouver and players joining Johnson at the 2010 games, next season might not go quite as well as the last.
For now, however, the Badgers can bask in the glory of another national championship and the knowledge that they were the most successful and dominant team wearing cardinal and white in the 2008-'09 season.
Honorable Mention: UW Women's Cross Country
