MIDDLEBURY, VT — Senior forward Kayla Coady has been chosen by the nation's coaches as the 2009 winner of the Laura Hurd Award, symbolic of the nation's best Division III women's ice hockey player. Coady, a native of Charlottetown, PEI, will take the ice this weekend at the NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Championships hosted by Middlebury College.

Coady compiled 18 goals and 35 assists for 53 points in 28 games this season for Elmira. She was a prime reason for Elmira's 23-4-1 record and its ECAC West championship. She was named a first team All American for her efforts in leading Elmira to the ECAC West regular season (16-1-1) and tournament (3-0 final win over Plattsburgh) titles. Over her four-year career, Coady has recorded 79-100-179 in 112 games.

Said Elmira head coach Greg Fargo, “Kayla has the ability to see the ice better than most and her puck control and poise are among the best I have witnessed. She is an unselfish player who distributes the puck extremely well. Kayla has a knack for finding our open players and getting them the puck. This season, her contributions to our team are not limited to her offensive production as she has flourished while playing many key minutes in all key situations.”

The award is named in honor of former Elmira College star Laura Hurd who died in a car accident shortly after graduation. Hurd was a four-time All-American who led Elmira to victory in the first NCAA Division III Women’s Hockey Championships. Coady and her Elmira teammates will play Wisconsin-River Falls at 3:30 p.m. Friday afternoon in this year’s NCAA “Frozen Four” semifinals.

The runner-up for the 2009 Laura Hurd Award was Danielle Blanchard, a senior forward from Plattsburgh State and the winner of the Hurd Award in 2008.