The story of UConn women's hockey's first team (part two)

This is part two in the story of UConn women’s hockey’s first team. Read part one here.

In Spring 2000, UConn announced that women’s hockey would play a fully varsity, Division I schedule the following winter. The players on the club team were invited to make the leap for the 2000-2001 season. Seniors on the team landed full scholarships while underclassmen received varying levels of financial support.

That wasn’t the only difference, either.

“When you step up to Division I, there's more things that are planned for us. Meals and snacks and refreshments were readily available. A noticeable uptick in terms of nutrition. In terms of gear, we were fully supplied,” Diana Cohen said.

“It was just so eye-opening once we were Division I. We had so many more resources available to us. If we were falling behind in an exam or a test, they would get tutors for us,” Marcy Lambert Pellegrino said.

“We could tell a sudden increase in seriousness. Strength and conditioning at 6:00 a.m. Access to student athlete academic counselors,” said Cohen, noting that these investments made clear UConn’s earnestness in making the program work and simultaneously heightened expectations.

“With the club team, we didn't get rights to the ice during normal business hours. And we didn't get any funding. So we were responsible for our own skates and our own everything,” Pellegrino said.

“When we went Division I, every time we went into the locker room it was like Christmas,” she continued, referring to all of the gear and attire that was suddenly available to them.

In August of that first year, UConn introduced Heather Linstad as the school’s first varsity women’s hockey coach. Linstad was a hockey lifer. The Massachusetts native had served as head coach at Northeastern University for the previous eight seasons where she had built a strong resume. Linstad’s record at Northeastern was 161-71-27 and her team won four Beanpots as well as the ECAC championship in 1997. 

Linstad had been a three-sport athlete at Providence College, starring in soccer, hockey, and softball. She served as hockey’s team captain for three seasons at Providence, was named the 1989 ECAC Player of the Year, and was on the leaderboard for virtually every career and single-season mark in school history.

When asked why she jumped from the well-established Northeastern program to the fledgling one in Storrs, Linstad wrote that it was, “The challenge to build a new women’s ice hockey program. Build something from the ground up. The competitive spirit of being an athlete.”

Linstad credits UConn for making a serious investment in women’s hockey.

“I can’t say enough about Lou Perkins, Jeff Hathaway and Pat Babcock. The confidence they showed in me to build a program was the driving force behind my desire to create a great program that UConn would be proud of,” Linstad said of their support.

She was well-liked and respected by her first-year varsity players but universally described as intense.

“I commend UConn for reaching for someone with that kind of experience. Her hiring was UConn saying, ‘We mean business.’ She was no-nonsense, very challenging. From her perspective, I'm sure we were challenging as well,” Cohen said.

The lead-up to the 2000-2001 varsity season felt quite different than preparation for club games the previous winter.

“Practices were more strategic and more purposeful. There's more intention to everything,” Pellegrino said.

“There was more structured practice. There was more lifting. We had more fans in the stands. [Linstad] pushed us to become better players and work on our skills,” Swistak said.

As team captain, Swistak focused on keeping up team morale and figuring out what motivated her teammates. 

“Rana [Swistak] was the one that took the reins and was there for everybody else. She would mimic what Coach Heather wanted on the ice and off the ice,” Pellegrino said.

“Heather [Linstad] knew how to work with different personalities. And different abilities. I just loved her. She was amazing,” Pellegrino continued.

“She taught me a lot. A lot about leadership, a lot about hockey,” Cohen said. “She punished us for not doing what we were supposed to do. I remember one athlete showing up late for practice and she had to run up and down the stands in her gear for the entire practice.”

Linstad spent considerable amounts of time working with the team on the whiteboard, explaining hockey tactics in detail to a group of relative newcomers.

“There was this back-checking drill that Heather always would have us do. The drill required major speed and hyper-fast sprinting, and I remember doing it three times in a row and I kept saying, ‘Oh shit, oh shit.’ So then [my teammates] would just call it Marcy’s ‘Oh shit’ regimen,” Pellegrino said.

UConn’s opposition during the 2000-2001 season varied considerably. The Huskies played plenty of opponents who were vastly superior. They played several opponents who were clearly inferior to them as well. Their official regular season record was 3-10, though they also won several exhibition games.

In UConn’s exhibition opener, they defeated Rhode Island’s club team, 18-0. Four different Huskies scored hat tricks in the game.

UConn followed this up with a 19-0 loss to Manhattanville in its regular season debut.

“The coach of that team said he wouldn’t beat us by more than 20 prior to the game. I couldn’t believe he said it. I couldn’t believe he thought that was a great way to grow the game of women’s ice hockey.” Linstad said.  

The Huskies responded by taking their anger out on Salve Regina, whom they defeated 12-0. After a couple of more early-season losses, UConn pummeled Salve Regina again, 11-4, in the last contest before exams. Senior Laura Scarpa scored a hat trick that night. 

“Laura [Scarpa] showed a lot of leadership skills. Diana Cohen did a fabulous job as the goalie,” Linstad said.

Cohen played every minute of every game in goal for the 2000-2001 Huskies.

“People who play the goalie position tend to thrive on pressure, otherwise they wouldn't choose it. It was scary but exhilarating at the same time. I was able to grow by getting the chance to play as frequently as possible,” Cohen said.

January was a slog for the Huskies as they lost all five games that month by at least eight goals. But in February, UConn defeated St. Michael’s 6-3. The Huskies closed out the 2000-2001 season with an exhibition victory over in-state rival Quinnipiac, 2-0.

“When we beat Quinnipiac, it felt really good. They had turned Division I that year, too. They were a little more on our playing field in terms of skill level,” Swistak said.

In addition to coaching the 2000-2001 team, Linstad spent considerable amounts of time working on the program’s future through recruiting. She said the biggest challenge was convincing student-athletes to sign on to a brand-new program.

She also had to give “geography lessons to Canadians. None of them wanted to move to the Yukon territory,” Linstad said. Her efforts paid off.

In June 2001, UConn women’s hockey announced an incoming recruiting class of 16 players, all of whom would receive full or partial scholarships. This initial recruiting class served as the framework for the program’s future. As seniors, this group finished third in Hockey East.

“I recruited student-athletes that had a ton of grit and determination. They loved being students at UConn and they wanted the program to have success,” Linstad said.

In the early years of UConn women’s hockey, Linstad split several scholarships to bring as much depth as possible to the roster.

“It was almost entirely a new team in year two. I inquired about staying but it was made clear to me that I would be a practice goalie. In retrospect, I wish I did it. Just to have that experience,” Cohen, who still plays recreationally, said.

“It was wonderful to be part of getting more female athletes out there,” Swistak said.

Cohen, Swistak, and Pellegrino beam with pride at what UConn women’s hockey has become. This past season, the Huskies won their second Hockey East Tournament championship and won their first-ever NCAA Tournament game. The program now owns four conference titles and two appearances in the field of 11.

It all started with that group during the winter of 2000-01.

“I couldn't be more proud. I watch their seasons with such joy. I've gone to a few games. The level of athleticism is just incredibly impressive. I'm really proud of what UConn's done over the years,” Cohen said. “They've situated themselves as a national championship caliber team. To know that I've been a part of that in a small way is such a deep source of pride for me.”