Andrea Peterson, a senior defenseman at Gustavus Adolphus College and a four-time All-American, is the winner of the 2007 Laura Hurd Award, presented to theWomen’s College Division Hockey Player of the Year and voted by the nation’s Division III head coaches. Peterson, whose starry career ended last week at the NCAA Quarterfinals, was named the Player of the Year in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) in each of her four varsity seasons. She is a native of White Bear Lake, MN.

Said Gustavus head coach Mike Carroll, “Andrea Peterson is the finest individual, and hockey player that I have had the opportunity to work with in my 20 years of coaching hockey. She is dedicated, hard working, passionate, competitive, bright, and humble. It has been an honor to have been associated with her over the past four years and I cannot imagine a more deserving recipient of the Laura Hurd Award.

“While Andrea’s statistics speak for themselves, they do not begin to tell the story of the impact she has had on the Gustavus women’s hockey program. Andrea is a natural leader and she sets a great example for the team to follow in the classroom, the locker room and on the ice. In competition, Andrea always plays her best hockey in the big games and has been the main reason that Gustavus has won three consecutive MIAC titles, played in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments.”

Peterson’s 185 career points are a school and conference record, as well as a national record for defensemen. She ranks third all-time in Division III among all players.

The runner-up for this award was Erin Kegley, a senior forward at UW-Superior. The other finalists for this year’s award: Danielle Blanchard, SO, F, Plattsburgh; Amber Lindner, SR G, UW-River Falls; Stacey McConnell, SR D, RIT; Stephanie Price, SR, F, Utica; and Kathleen Twomey, SO F, Saint Anselm College.

Previously called the College Division Player of the Year Award, the LAURA HURD AWARD, named this year after the late Elmira College All-American, is chosen by the AMERICAN HOCKEY COACHES ASSOCIATION.