Liberty University Club Sports
University of Delaware
DII women’s hockey team thrilled to start 2021-22 season Friday at Delaware
9/28/2021 3:48:51 PM | Women's D2 Hockey
Nine newcomers have meshed with eight returning players to form a tightly knit Liberty University ACHA Division II women’s hockey team, which will play its first games in more than a year and a half this weekend.
“I’m so excited,” sophomore forward Amanda Varga said. “It’s so nice to finally have the opportunity to play games and just be out there with the girls. We have a great team. We have a lot of incoming freshmen and we’re going to be tough to beat this year.”
The Lady Flames followed the University of Delaware and the Naval Academy back to the Delaware Valley Collegiate Hockey Conference (DVCHC) this season after spending the past two years in College Hockey East. They join Maryland, Rowan (N.J.), Villanova (Pa.), Pennsylvania, West Chester (Pa.), Loyola (Md.), Montclair (N.J.) State, and Towson (Md.) in the conference.
Liberty will open its 2021-22 season at Delaware on Friday at 9:15 p.m. before playing at Villanova, another conference opponent, on Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
Liberty will vie to be one of the eight teams out of 10 in the conference to qualify for the Feb. 18-20DVCHC Tournament at the Delaware State Fairgrounds. Before then, they hope to rise in the rankings into the top four out of nearly 30 teams in the Southeast Region to earn one of 16 bids to the ACHA DII women’s National Championships, set for March 10-20 in St. Louis.
“We’ll be very competitive this year,” Lady Flames Head Coach Rena Leone said. “With the team and how they’re working together, we could definitely be in the top four. Our team chemistry is definitely going to play in our favor and, with our girls’ work ethic, if their skill level needs to be improved, they’re willing to put in the work to get there.”
Graduate defenseman Sarah LaPorte is the Lady Flames’ head captain, with forwards Delaney Adams, a senior, and graduate Kiana Zeigler serving as her alternates.
Besides LaPorte, senior Brynlee Anderson, freshman Madison Natter, and Dominique Duenas, a junior transfer from El Paso (Texas) Community College, will anchor the defense.
“(Duenas) is from Mexico City and played multiple years in Canada at a high school prep school in Banff, before also playing in Montreal and Quebec, so she has been a very good addition and definitely a big surprise,” Leone said, noting that she is fluent in both Spanish and English.
Offensively, Leone has 11 forwards to work with and they will lean on Adams, Varga, and freshman Madison Gaddy, with each leading their respective lines.
Izzy Buckett, a freshman from California, who previously played for the Anaheim Lady Ducks team that competed at USA Hockey Nationals last year, will be the Lady Flames’ starting goalie.
Buckett will be backed up by sophomore Alex Ritter, who, like Leone, grew up playing goalie for her field hockey team, only in Fairfax, Va., not Pennsylvania.
“She does not come from a competitive hockey background, but her skill level is very impressive,” Leone said. “She worked on her game over the summer, came out for tryouts, and has been a great addition.”
She will know better after battling Delaware and Villanova which goalie has the upper hand and which offensive and defensive combinations work best together.
“We’re still figuring our lines out, finding chemistry, and this weekend will give us a good gauge of how we’re going to move forward from here,” Leone said. “We’re just excited to be playing again.”
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer; Video edited by Kylie Ligle/Club Sports Video & Media Assistant
