BOSTON, MA - Color the 1999 Women's College Hockey All-American Team crimson. The national champions from Harvard University placed four standouts on the six-player First Team announced today, including Patty Kazmaier Award winner (Player of the Year) A.J. Mleczko. In all, 13 players were recognized by the nation's head coaches.

Two All-American teams were announced for the first time, with six different schools represented. In addition to Harvard, three other schools claimed multiple honorees: Minnesota (3), Brown (2), and New Hampshire (2). All of this made possible by the American Women's College Hockey Alliance (AWCHA), established last year by USA Hockey.

On July 8, 1997, USA Hockey was awarded a United States Olympic Comrnittee/National Collegiate Athletic Association Conference Grant that is designed to promote institutional sponsorship of Olympic sports at the college level. The purpose of the AWCHA is to organize and develop activities with women's intercollegiate varsity ice hockey teams and to nationally promote the development and sponsorship of women's ice hockey at all NCAA levels throughout the United States.

The first AWCHA undertaking was the 1998 National Championship for women's college hockey, held March 20-21, 1998, at Harvard University and Boston's FleetCenter. New Hampshire, regular season champions of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), defeated Brown University, ECAC tournament champions, in that historic first final. This year, Harvard captured the second National Championship by defeating Brown University and defending champion New Hampshire, the latter in a classic overtime final. This year's event was held at the University of Minnesota's Mariucci Arena.

The All-American ballot process was conducted by the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA), which also oversees the voting for men's All-American intercollegiate hockey teams.