Kevin Nagel Sports Editor sports@oakvillebeaver.com Sports 23 | Friday, March 25, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com "Connected to your Community" Oakville's Camille Leonard (left photo), in her third year with the Plattsburgh Cardinals, posted the best goalsagainst average in the nation, 0.69, while going 27-1-0 for the Cardinals, who won the NCAA Division III women's hockey title for the third straight year last Saturday. Plattsburgh captain Andrea Ziesmann (right photo), another Oakville product, also lifted the NCAA Division III women's hockey trophy for the third time after the Cardinals beat Wisconsin-River Falls 5-1. The senior defenceman was named to the ECAC West second all-star team. | Photos by Gabe Dickens -- Special to the Oakville Beaver Third straight NCAA title for local duo from recording the elusive perfect season. "I had no idea that was possible," the Oakville Beaver staff Loyola grad said. "It's pretty amazing. I don't Andrea Ziesmann remembers seeing Platts- think I could have ever imagined that." burgh State's record after signing on with the It was also the third straight title for Cardinals in 2012. Oakville's Camille Leonard. The third-year She was joining a team that had finished netminder was named to the all-tournament third in the nation and was losing just four team after carrying a 297-minute shutout senior players. streak into the semifinals. "The season before they only had seven As the final 60 seconds ticked off the clock, losses," she said. "I remember Leonard couldn't help taking a thinking that was pretty good." peek at the Plattsburgh bench. Saturday, as the Cardinals' "I saw the girls getting ready captain, Ziesmann accepted to storm out on to the ice," she the National Collegiate Athsaid. "As a goalie, that's the way letic Association women's you want to end a season, behockey Division III chaming at the bottom of a dog pile." pionship trophy following For Ziesmann, the clock Plattsburgh's 5-1 win over ticking down was not only Wisconsin-River Falls. Her bringing her closer to a nationteam lost just five games, al title, but also to the end of which is pretty impressive for her collegiate career. one season. But considering "On the ice in that last minthose five losses were spread ute, you look around in the out over her four-year college crowd and it was amazing," Camille Leonard career, the numbers are mindPlattsburgh State goalie she said. boggling. Playing at their home rink, Plattsburgh went 110-5-5 the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Areduring Ziesmann's career, capping it off with na, it didn't take long for it to sink in what a third straight national title last weekend. was on the line. The latest championship may have been "Coming out for the first period, it got a the most impressive. The Cardinals set a Divi- little emotional," Leonard said. "The student sion III record for the most wins in a season, section was going insane. They had posters 29, while outscoring their opponents 165-21. made for everyone. After the game we were Only a 4-2 loss to Utica College in February signing autographs. You couldn't have asked after a 23-0-0 start prevented the Cardinals for anything better." By Herb Garbutt Leonard was named to the all-tournament team and finished the season 27-1-0 with 15 shutouts and a 0.69 goals-against average. With Leonard in net and Ziesmann, a conference all-star, and their former Oakville Hornets teammate Caitlin Gilligan on the blueline, the Cardinals were a formidable defensive unit that ranked first in the country by a wide margin. But it was Wisconsin River-Falls that scored first in the championship game, putting Plattsburgh in the rare position of playing catch-up. But it took only three minutes for the Cardinals to tie the game; they took the lead by the end of the period and never surrendered it. Ziesmann, who had two goals and 11 assists in 28 games, had only ever experienced one playoff loss. That was in her freshman season, when Plattsburgh was undefeated heading into the national semifinal, only to be upset by Middlebury. "That was the worst loss of my life," she said. "I couldn't have imagined going out with a loss in my senior year." Despite the Cardinals' success, Ziesmann never took winning the national title for granted. "At the beginning of the year, if feels so far off because there's so much that goes into it," Ziesmann said. "You're in the gym two or three times a week, you're on the ice six days a week. It was really rewarding going up there to accept the trophy and go out on a big win like that." That's the way you want to end a season, being at the bottom of a dog pile.