Sports briefs

Chu named Kazmaier winner

After having proved herself on the international stage as a two-time Olympic medalist, senior forward Julie Chu recently earned more than a bit of validation as the nation's top collegiate player by taking home the prestigious Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award.

Given annually since 1998 by the USA Hockey Foundation, the award was presented to Chu during a March 17 ceremony in Lake Placid, N.Y. Chu was selected from a field of three finalists that included 2006 winner Sara Bauer of Wisconsin and Mercyhurst freshman Meghan Agosta. A 13-member selection committee consisting of coaches, media members, and a representative from USA Hockey selected Chu.

Chu joins four other Crimson icers to accept the award. Harvard's past recipients include A.J. Mleczko '99 in 1999, Jennifer Botterill '03 in 2001 and 2003, and Angela Ruggiero '04 in 2004.

A top-10 finalist for the award during her sophomore season, Chu was named co-Ivy League player of the year this past season in addition to getting picked unanimously to the first team All-ECAC. She finished the year ranked first nationally in points per game (2.20), assists (48), and assists per game (1.60). Chu finished her playing career at Harvard with a school-record 196 career assists. With her 88 goals, she will graduate in third place on Harvard's career scoring chart with 284 points.

Lax shellac Quinnipiac

A host Harvard women's lacrosse team tallied 12 unanswered goals en route to a 13-point first-half to overwhelm Quinnipiac, 16-3, this past Sunday (March 18). Junior midfielder Natalie Curtis paced the Crimson with four first-half goals.

Freshman paces Crimson wrestling

Freshman wrestler J.P. O'Connor placed fifth in the 149-pound weight class at the NCAA championships this past weekend (March 15-17) in Auburn Hill, Mich. The first freshman All-American in Harvard wrestling history, O'Connor — together with teammates and fellow All-Americans Louis Caputo '09 and Max Meltzer '07 (who placed seventh and eighth, respectively) — helped Harvard notch its highest point total ever at the NCAA champs with 29.