George Crowe will be greatly missed in the ECAC Women's DI League. His
marvelous style of coaching always presented fans with a different twist.
Crowe managed to build teams that produced a fine skate and pass game that
always had you guessing where the real point of the attack was. I will
greatly miss his leadership and inspiration in college ice hockey.
Judy Parish, who was a tough Dartmouth defender, with a knack for scoring
key goals, has been the assistant coach with the Dartmouth women, and
looks to be the perfect match as the new head coach.
bonne chance to George and Judy -Richard
-- -- --
HANOVER, N.H. -- After a total of 21 years behind the Dartmouth
College bench -- including nine as the Big Green men's hockey coach
and the last 12 as head coach of the women's hockey program --
George Crowe is retiring.
"I think women's hockey has gone through stages here at Dartmouth,"
said Crowe. "One stage has come during the past 12 years, where it
has just grown and grown. Now the program needs younger people to
take it to the next stage, which is really just starting."
Dartmouth did not have to look far to find a replacement. Associate
head coach Judy Parish '91, who played under Crowe for four years
and has spent the last five years as his top assistant, will step
right in as the next head coach of Dartmouth women's hockey.
"I have known George for all the years he has been here at
Dartmouth," said Director of Athletics Dick Jaeger. "He has done
terrific things with the men's and women's programs, and has
brought the women to a level of success that we can all be proud
of. His departure will create a huge absence for a lot of us
because he has been such a fixture.
"Having said that," he continued. "I can't think of anyone better
to take over the program than Judy Parish."
Crowe leaves after perhaps the best season in the 22-year history
of the women's hockey program. Dartmouth tied a school record with
20 wins, won its fourth Ivy League title in the 1990s and finished
the regular season third in the ECAC standings. The Big Green lost
to Brown in the ECAC tournament semifinals, but Crowe was named
Coach of the Year by the ECAC and the New England Hockey Writers
Association. The ECAC award was Crowe's second in three years.
Crowe first came to Hanover in 1975 -- a year before women's hockey
even arrived on the scene at Dartmouth -- to coach the Dartmouth
men's hockey program. He led the Big Green to a pair of NCAA
semifinal appearances, in 1979 and 1980, and was named National
Coach of the Year by Hockey News in 1980.
Crowe resigned from the men's program in 1984, but came back to
coach the women prior to the 1986-87 season and built a dynasty.
During his tenure the Big Green has won four Ivy League
regular-season championships (1991, 1993, 1995, 1998) and one title
in the now-defunct Ivy tournament (1989). All eight of Dartmouth's
ECAC Tournament appearances have happened under Crowe, as well,
including four semifinal contests.
Crowe never had a losing season with the Big Green women, compiling
a 196-107-20 overall record. In addition, he is 78-31-11 against
the Ivy League, including a staggering 58-15-7 since the 1990-91
season. Overall, Crowe retires with a 305-234-28 record as a
Dartmouth College hockey coach.
"When I came in, they asked me to do it for a year," he said. "Now
here it is, 12 years later. I'm not tired of it, and I still love
it. But Judy is more than ready to do this, and I believe that when
someone is ready to take over they should."
Crowe's replacement is certainly no stranger to the Dartmouth
program. Judy Parish was a three-time first team All-Ivy pick as a
Big Green player and still holds eight school records. On
Dartmouth's all-time scoring lists, Parish ranks first with 126
assists, second with 215 points and third with 89 goals. She also
played lacrosse at Dartmouth, and at the end of the 1990-91
academic year she received the Class of 1976 Award as the
outstanding female athlete at the College.
Parish was also a member of the first United States women's
national hockey team, which competed and won a silver medal at the
inaugural World Ice Hockey Championships in Canada.
Before returning to Hanover after her playing career, Parish spent
a year teaching and coaching ice hockey at the Taft School in
Watertown, Conn. She then traveled to Japan for the 1992-93
academic year, teaching English and playing hockey with one of
Japan's top women's club teams.
"I'm incredibly excited," said Parish. "I've had a great mentor,
and the program has grown so much under his guidance. We've been
lucky to have him. It really is the end of an era, and I've been
fortunate to be around for much of that time.
"I think college hockey in general is losing someone special," she
continued. "He has been so successful and the program was in good
hands with him. I've been the biggest beneficiary of that, so the
pressure is to keep growing on what he has built."
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good shooting
hungerf
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