WAKEFIELD, Mass. – Maine women's head hockey coach Richard Reichenbach was named the Hockey East Coach of the Year, as announced by the league on Friday evening at the Championship and Awards Banquet. Three Black Bears were also nominated to the Hockey East All-Star Teams. Junior defender Alyson Matteau and sophomore forward Tereza Vanisova were both selected to the Hockey East Second Team All-Stars and sophomore goaltender Carly Jackson was named to the Hockey East All-Star Honorable Mentions.
 
Richard Reichenbach is the first Maine women's hockey coach to be honored with this achievement by the WHEA as he leads his team to the Hockey East Semifinals, posting a winning season with an overall record of 19-13-5 and conference record of 11-9-4. His team finished as the No.3-seed in the league advancing into the semifinals ranked No.10 in nation as voted by the USCHO poll. The Black Bears were nationally ranked in the top-ten six weeks this season while making school history as the winningest team the women's hockey program has ever seen, capturing 19 wins after winning their first ever WHEA playoff game then going on to win their first ever WHEA playoff quarterfinal series.
 
He is in his fifth full season as head coach of the Maine women's hockey team and eighth year overall at Maine. Beginning in the 2010-11 season, Reichenbach served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Black Bears before taking over as co-head coach during the 2013-14 season. Since becoming head coach, he posts a career record of 56-97-16. This will be his first semifinal appearance and best ranking at the end of the season since the 2014-15 season when his team finished as the No.-4 seed.
 
Matteau has recorded an impressive season on the defensive line, leading her team for the second-straight year in blocks with 72. Last season she stepped in front of 52 shots. In both her freshman and sophomore year, she stepped onto the ice in every single game of the season, and just one game shy in her junior year She's not only an asset on defense, but also on the attack, tallying 5 goals and 10 assists to add on to her career total of 14 goals and 31 assists (45 points), seeing time in 103 games. She's the only player in her class to have surpassed playing in 100 games. Matteau has previously been named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team and a two-time Maine Scholar Athlete.
 
In the 2016-17 season, Vanisova was named awarded Hockey East Co-Rookie of the Year after a promising first season as a Black Bear, she closed out her first season tied with Brooke Stacey for the most points – 28. She netted 16 goals and dished out 12 assists as a rookie, and continued to improve into her sophomore year, nearly doubling her total points registering 45 in 36 games. Overall, this unstoppable forward has incredible speed and agility weaving around defenders to accumulate 73 points in her career in 64 games. She is currently ranked No. 12 in the top leading scorers in the nation. As a rookie, she recorded one hat trick, four power play goals and two game-winners. This season, Vanisova tucked away one power play goal and four game-winners. In the middle of the season, the sophomore was on a hot streak earning at least one point in ten consecutive matches. Vanisova also scored the game-winner in overtime in the decisive game-three of the Hockey East Quarterfinal Series to help the Black Bears advance to the semifinals. Her freshman year, she was named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team, recognized as a UMaine Rising Star, and awarded the Czech Republic's Female Hockey Player of the Year.
 
Jackson has shown incredible skill in net for the Black Bears, starting in 25 of 27 games her freshman year and 33 of 34 games this year. The sophomore closed out the regular season with the lowest goals against average in the conference - 1.88 GAA. The backbone of the Black Bears, she's accumulated a career total of 1518 saves with an overall record of 24-29-6 throughout both years with four shutouts, three in her sophomore season. After blanking UNH (3-0) grabbing 28-saves, Jackson set the single-season program record for wins by a Maine goaltender with 15 and going into semis, she has a season record of 17-11-5. As a rookie, she was named to the Hockey East All-Academic Team and recognized as a Maine Scholar Athlete.
 
 
Player of the Year (Cammi Granato Award): Daryl Watts, Boston College
                Runner-up – Victoria Bach, Boston University
               
Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Year: Daryl Watts, Boston College *
                Runner-up – Maureen Murphy, Providence
 
Hockey East Coach of the Year: Richard Reichenbach, Maine
                Runner-up – Bob Deraney, Providence
 
First-Team All-Stars
G:  Annie Belanger, UCONN
D:  Abby Cook, Boston University
D:  Toni Ann Miano, Boston College *
F:  Victoria Bach, Boston University *
F:  Caitrin Lonergan, Boston College *
F:  Daryl Watts, Boston College *
 
Second Team All-Stars
G:  Katie Burt, Boston College
D:  Lauren Kelly, Northeastern
D:  Alyson Matteau, Maine
F:  Rebecca Leslie, Boston University
F:  Maureen Murphy, Providence
F:  Tereza Vanišová, Maine
 
All Star Honorable Mentions:
G:  Carly Jackson, Maine
D:  Kate Friesen, Providence
D:  Taylor Willard, Vermont
F:  Katelyn Rae, Merrimack
F:  Makenna Newkirk, Boston College
F:  Natalie Snodgrass, UCONN
 
*denotes unanimous selection
 
 
-UMaine-