Catamounts freshman goalie a bright spot in shortened season
BURLINGTON, Vt. (BVM) — University of Vermont goalie Jessie McPherson wasn鈥檛 going to let a shortened season stop her from making an impact on the Catamounts鈥� hockey season. The freshman netminder put on a full display of her abilities during 2021, securing Hockey East Rookie of the Year.听
The honor was a first-ever in program history as McPherson shined in her seven starts posting a .938 save percentage, while allowing just 1.57 goals against. Her goals-against average ranked her eighth in the nation.
“This is a fantastic honor for Jessie and our program,” UVM head coach Jim Plumer said in a . “Even though it was a short season, Jessie made a tremendous impact for us and I am so grateful that my fellow coaches in Hockey East recognized her for her outstanding play. As I have said before, Jessie’s competitive nature shows every day in practice and she brings that same demeanor to the way she plays in games. She is in the history books as our first winner of this award and I can’t wait to see what Jessie accomplishes during the rest of her career at UVM.”
Jessie McPherson First Player in Program History Named Hockey East Rookie of the Year –
— UVM Women's Hockey (@UVMwhockey)
For the Catamounts, McPherson was a bright spot in the team鈥檚 up-and-down season. After getting out to a hot start by winning six of its first seven games, the team closed with five straight losses. Even with the play, the Catamounts rookie goalie was able to flash in some special performances throughout the season.听
In UVM鈥檚 matchup against Holy Cross, McPherson became the first freshman goaltender to earn a shutout in her debut for Vermont since 2014. She would go on to top that achievement a week later against UConn with a 26-save shutout. The Ontario native totaled three shutouts throughout the 2021 season, putting her second in the nation for rookie goaltenders.
McPherson wasn鈥檛 the only Catamount to receive Hockey East honors as junior defenseman Maude Poulin-Labelle was chosen to the Hockey East all-star second team following her five-point season. Senior forward Olivia Kilberg picked up the sportsmanship award, while McPherson later doubled down on her rookie honors landing on the all-rookie team.听
With a loss to Maine in the Hockey East tournament closing out the Catamounts鈥� shortened season, McPherson will have to wait till next year to get back in goal.
