The St. Catherine University hockey team has been on a roll lately, going 5-1 in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) to open the 2012-13 season in the No. 2 spot in the conference standings heading into the winter break. The Wildcats' success has been in large part to the strong play-making ability of Becky Clifton (Imperial, Mo.). For her two-assist weekend, she has earned the Wildcat Athlete of the Week honor.
After falling 3-0 to the College of Saint Benedict on Friday evening at Drake Arena, the Wildcats bounced back in a huge way with a 4-2 win on Saturday in St. Cloud. Clifton was an integral part of the Wildcats' success as she set up teammate Kasey Evans (Burnsville, Minn.) twice, including the game-winning goal in the third period. This was Clifton's second consecutive multiple-point weekend in 2012-13.
So far this season, Clifton has had a hand in three-game winning goals. She recorded the assist on Evans' game-winner on Saturday and also set up the game-winner against Augsburg on Nov. 10. The junior netted the game-winner in the Wildcats' 3-2 win over Saint Mary's on Nov. 16.
Clifton is now tied with teammates Megan Killmer (Savage, Minn.) and Bailey Rasmussen (Grand Rapids, Minn.) to lead the team in points (5), and her four assists is tied for eighth-most in the MIAC.
Clifton and the Wildcats return to non-conference action Tuesday night, Dec. 4, against UW-Superior for a 7:30 p.m. game at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis.
