Women’s Hockey Ranked No. 1 in Nation

Kate Becker ’26 and Kate Quigley ’26 Staff Writers

The women’s ice hockey team continued their record-breaking season this past weekend; they hosted eight-seed Wesleyan on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the NESCAC quarterfinals. The Mammoths secured the 2-0 victory with goals from Senior Captain Avery Flynn ’23 and Rylee Glennon ’24, improving their record to 22-3-0 on the season. The number one seed in the tournament, the Mammoths will host the NESCAC semifinal round on Friday, March 3, and the championship on Saturday, March 4. As they prepare for the upcoming clash against No. 4 Middlebury, we take a look back on what they’ve accomplished thus far.

The Mammoths opened up conference play immediately in November, with a tough double header against Hamilton. They split the series 1-1, and then went on a tear, winning their next 18 straight games. These include wins against conference foes: Middlebury 4-2 (two games back to back), Bowdoin 7-1 on Senior Day, and Wesleyan 6-0.

Headlined by 10 shutouts from first-year keeper Natalie Scott ’26, we checked in with Stott on how she felt the team had progressed this season: “I think our team’s culture has really contributed to our success this season. We always talk about winning the culture battle and showing our heart on the ice, which is easy to do when you have a team that is so close.”

Stott is one of seven freshmen, and we spoke to Captain Leslie Schwartz ’23 on the impact this talented young class has had on the program this season. “Each first year was able to step in and immediately play college level hockey as if they have been for years,” Schwartz said. “Defense is a huge part of the game and with half the D-core as first years, they have stepped up in a huge way by making sound defensive plays in the D-zone and also getting huge game winning goals in the O-zone as well.” Senior Flynn continued the praise of the first-years, describing them as “smart, gritty, and selfless players, who fit perfectly into the AWH family.” another and lifting each other up.” weekend at Orr Rink, the team feels really excited to be hosting the NESCAC championship. Schwartz went on to comment that “winning a championship on home ice would be an incredible feeling with this group.”

The Mammoths are keeping up this momentum and looking to do everything they can this work week before they begin the NESCAC semifinals on Friday. With the top four seeds in the tournament all advancing to the semifinal round, the competition looks stiff. But, it’s nothing the battle-tested Mammoths are not prepared for.

James Minor ’23 Staff Writer

With the pre-season testing for the 2023 Formula 1 season now complete, fans and pundits alike now have a clearer understanding of the running order for the beginning of the year. The 10 teams drove a collective 21,637 km (13,445 mi) over three days in preparation for this year's 23-race season, which begins this weekend with the Bahrain Grand Prix. Testing does not give us an accurate picture of the running order via lap times — fuel loads, tire types, and testing programs varied between teams — but there are still some indicators of who is in a good spot and who may be struggling at the start of the year.

The Formula 1 field often finds itself split into three groups: the front, the midfield, and the backmarkers. Williams (driven by Alex Albon and Logan Sargent) has traversed all three in recent years. In 2015, they were comfortably towards the front. Three years later, they were at the back and have been there ever since. However, the 2020 purchase of the team by Dolitron Capital (an American private investment firm), recent developments to their car, and an upward trend in results have the team optimistic. To further boost their spirits, pundits called this the best test session for Williams in recent years. The team has come a long way from four years ago, when they could not get their car ready in time for testing.

McLaren (Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri) seem to be experiencing the opposite trend. Until last season, McLaren had been

But the young class isn’t the only reason for the Mammoths’ success; the program is loaded with senior leadership, excellent coaching, and dedication to the game. Emily Hohmann ’26 chimed in on the profound impact that the culture has had on the program’s achievements: “Our team culture has led to our success so far. We focus on the little elements within the game — like back-checks — that lead to big opportunities. Each player brings their own skills to the team, and all those individual skills gel together so well with the hard work and the energy everyone brings collectively.” These small details have proved critical, and the team’s commitment to every aspect of the game shines through their impeccable record. With the post-season underway, the team is looking forward to further successes, both on and off the ice. An overarching theme was an emphasis on the team’s culture. Maeve Reynolds ’26 echoed Stott’s earlier sentiment, adding that the “team goal both on and off the ice is to win the culture battle. That means everyone is being a good teammate supporting one finishing at the top of the midfield, with their eyes set on the front. Last year, however, they relinquished that spot to Alpine (Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly). After testing, it doesn’t seem that they’ll reclaim their position. McLaren lost a lot of testing time last year because their brakes were too hot, and they could not find a way to cool them down. This year — with much less testing time — McLaren lost time again as the structures around the front brakes were not as strong as needed. Mechanics were seen using duct tape to ensure the parts held their intended shape.

Though it’s difficult to compare teams based on testing performance, they present the opportunity to “eye test” the cars. That being said, McLaren’s car did not look much better on track: McLaren’s drivers were often seen whip-

As they head into their match against No. 4 Middlebury this ping the wheel around to keep the car under control, and Piastri even spun on the final day. McLaren admitted that they missed their development targets, but they attributed it to the fact that they have another concept in the works, which was not ready in time for testing.

The rest of the field had a rather uneventful test. Only three teams experienced reliability issues: Aston Martin (Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll), Mercedes (Sir Lewis Hamilton and George Russel), and Alfa Romeo (Valterri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu), but the teams do not seem too concerned. That being said, the midfield will be interesting to watch this season. Haas (Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenburg) in particular had a decent test. And while the American outfit had a lineup of two rookies two years ago, it now boasts two

The Mammoths enter this week of play at No. 1 in the NESCAC Rankings and No. 1 in the Women’s Division III PairWise National Rankings. This Friday, the Mammoths take on the Middlebury Panthers at home. proven veterans behind the wheel of its car. A new title sponsor and renewed confidence seem to be propelling them forward. Alpha Tauri (Yuki Tsunoda and Nyck De Vries) have lost a proven driver in Pierre Gasly, but the lineup they have this year has plenty of potential and should set the team up for years to come. The team who signed Gasly, Alpine, seemed to be on the back foot after day one of testing, but addressed the issues and finished in a much better spot. Alfa Romeo — despite their stoppage — are still riding the upward trend from last year, which bodes well for the impending Audi takeover in 2026.