USA Hockey Release

ITHACA, N.Y. – Senior forward Rebecca Johnston and junior defenseman Laura Fortino have been named top-10 finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Award, USA Hockey announced Thursday.

The award, the most prestigious individual honor in women's college hockey, will be given out in conjunction with the NCAA Women's Frozen Four at a brunch ceremony on March 17 at the Greysolon Ballroom in Duluth, Minn.

Johnston, who was also named a top-10 finalist last season, is currently the team leader in points with 51. She was recently named the Ivy League's Player of the Year and also is in the running for ECAC Hockey's Player of the Year Award. Johnston tops ECAC Hockey with her 51 points, and her 25 goals are second in the league. She is currently 11th in the country in points per game (1.76).

Winning the gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics with Team Canada, Johnston returned to Cornell for two more seasons and solidified her place in school history. She sits fifth all-time for the Big Red in points.

Fortino has been named a Patty Kazmaier top-10 finalist for the second time in her career as well. Partnering on the blue line with Lauriane Rougeau, Fortino is part of a Big Red defense that gave up a league- and nation-low 47 goals total this season. Fortino is second in ECAC  Hockey with a plus/minus rating of +42.

She has scored seven goals this season, including two in the ECAC Hockey Tournament Quarterfinals against Brown last weekend. She also added 27 assists, a number that puts her second on the team behind Brianne Jenner.

Jenner and Rougeau, who were both part of the initial 34-athlete list of nominees, did not make the cut to the final 10.

Fortino and Johnston will have an opportunity to boost their Patty Kazmaier resumes with the ECAC Hockey Semifinal and possibly the ECAC Hockey Championship Game on Friday and Saturday in Lynah Rink. Cornell faces sixth-seeded Quinnipiac at 3:30 p.m. on Friday.