Lee Stecklein might be the most decorated athlete in the Twin Cities during the past two years and surely holds that title over the past month. The Roseville native won a gold medal at the women's hockey world championship Monday night, just 16 days after winning a NCAA national championship with the Gophers.
Stecklein, a junior defenseman, was one of three Gophers standouts on the ice for the world championship finale, a 1-0 overtime victory for the United States over Canada.
Defenseman Megan Bozek, a 2013 Minnesota graduate and two-time national champion, assisted the game-winning goal scored by Alex Carpenter 12:30 into overtime. Bozek's shot was redirected by Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and hit a post. Carpenter found the loose puck and secured gold.
Bozek finished the tournament with four points (one goal, three assists) and a plus-4 rating in four games. Stecklein had two assists and plus-3 rating in five games. Canadian forward Sarah Davis, a 2014 Minnesota grad and two-time national champ, was scoreless in four games.
Stecklein's resume is the most impressive of the bunch with three NCAA national championships, back-to-back gold medals at the world championships, and she won an Olympic silver medal with the U.S. National Team in 2014. She is also a two-time All-American.
She'll attempt to close out her college career next season with four national titles and should be a lock for another U.S. roster spot at the 2017 world championships.
Stecklein posted this photo on Instagram Monday night.
Bozek tweeted the same message and a photo that features her at the center of the group during the medal ceremony (she is No. 9).
Here is the highlight of Bozek's game-winning assist.
