WOMEN'S HOCKEY INKS FOUR MORE RECRUITS FOR 2007-08 SEASON

UMDBulldogs.com:

University Minnesota Duluth head women’s hockey coach Shannon Miller announced today that four more student-athletes have signed letters of intent to play at UMD. Forwards Lara Fridfinnson (Arborg, Manitoba), Chantal Larocque (St. Anne, Manitoba), defenseman Jocelyne Larocque (St. Anne, Manitoba), and goalie Lana Steck (Winnipeg, Manitoba) will join the Bulldogs for the 2007-08 season. These four players join an incoming class of seven players total, three of which were inked last November.

Coach Miller is “extremely excited to add these four outstanding student-athletes" to the three previous signees: forwards Haley Irwin (Thunder Bay, Ontario), Marie-Andreé Leclerc-Auger (Sherbrooke, Quebec), and defenseman Tara Gray (Toronto, Ontario).

"This class will add to our existing strong nucleus and they will have an immediate impact at UMD," Miller said. "We believe they will go down as one of our best recruiting classes ever.”

Forward Laura Fridfinnson comes from the powerhouse program Calgary Oval Extreme and Canada’s U-22 National Team. She will have an immediate impact due to her speed, vision and experience.

“Laura moved from Winnipeg to Calgary to train with the Olympic Oval Extreme high performance program," said Miller of Fridfinnson. "There, she gained playing and practice experience by competing with and against some of the best players in the world. Laura is a very smooth, skilled forward and will immediately bring offensive results.”

Forward Chantal Larocque also comes to UMD via the Calgary Oval Extreme with her younger sister, Jocelyne.

“Chantal is a tough, fast, no nonsense forward joining us from the Olympic Oval program in Calgary, Alberta,” Miller said. “Chantal’s competitive nature and fiery playing style stirs things up on the ice and makes good things happen. She is a player who knows how to compete and get things done.”

Jocelyne Larocque joins her sister, Chantal, from the Calgary Oval Extreme program and is member of the Canadian U-22 National Team.

“Jocelyn’s high level of experience, ability to skate, and ability to handle the puck will immediately make her one of our team’s top defensemen," Miller said of Larocque.

The Larocque siblings are the first-ever sister tandem to suit up for the Bulldogs.

Goalie Lana Steck rounds out the 2007 recruiting class. She, along with present Bulldog players Kim Martin and Amie Meyer, will make up the UMD goaltending unit.

“Lana Steck is believed to be a great ‘up and coming’ net minder. She recently backstopped Team Manitoba to a second place finish at the highly competitive Canada Winter Games,” Miller said.

*All signings are contingent upon admission to the University and compliance with NCAA rules, including certification by the NCAA Clearinghouse

RIP Herb Carneal

Not a UMD Women's hockey note, but a lot of hockey fans are Twins fans also.

Twins broadcast legend Carneal dies
Club dedicates upcoming season to Hall of Fame radio voice
By Kelly Thesier / MLB.com

MINNEAPOLIS -- One of the signature voices in Twins baseball history is now gone.

Longtime Twins radio broadcaster Herb Carneal passed away on Sunday morning at his home in Minnetonka due to congestive heart failure. Carneal was 83.

"This is a sad day for the Minnesota Twins organization and millions of baseball fans across the Upper Midwest," Twins President Dave St. Peter said. "Herb Carneal's voice was the signature element of Twins baseball for multiple generations of fans. Clearly, he was one of the most beloved figures in Minnesota sports history."

Carneal joined the Twins' broadcast booth in 1962 after spending the first five years of his career as part of the play-by-play team for the Baltimore Orioles. He was behind the microphone for all but the first of the Twins' 46 seasons in Minnesota.

Carneal had spent six weeks in the hospital this past winter battling a variety of ailments. He had been scheduled to broadcast some home games this season, although it was announced last week that he would miss Opening Day.

Upon receiving word of Carneal's death, the Twins announced that they will dedicate the 2007 season in memory of the Hall of Fame broadcaster. Carneal received the Ford C. Frick Award in 1996, the highest honor for a baseball broadcaster. He was also inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2001.

Carneal is survived by his daughter Terri and grandson Matthew. Funeral arrangements are pending and will be announced when they become available.

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