From The Lantern, October 15, 1997:

Women skate into varsity club

Kim Chatfield

Lantern staff writer

Ohio State will soon have another varsity team to cheer on to victory.

In 1999, the varsity women's ice hockey team will make its debut, according to Susan Henderson, spokeswoman for the Department of Athletics.

Last spring, Ohio State's women's ice hockey club team received varsity status, but there is a three-year phase in process, Henderson said.

The current OSU women's ice hockey team is a club sport, Henderson said.

Christa Horst, a junior pre-veterinarian major, is president of the club. Horst said that she is excited about the upcoming varsity status.

Currently, the officers of the club schedule games, organize travel plans and take care of all other organizational needs of the club, she said.

"It's too much for students to try to do," Horst said.

The varsity team's scheduling, travel plans and other organizational needs will be taken care of by the Department of Athletics and the coach, she said.

Horst said that one negative aspect of having a varsity level involves the future of the club team.

"The only thing that scares me is there's a possibility that the club team won't make it," she said.

The club is important for beginning players. It gives them a chance to improve their skills, Horst said. The club now has 40 members. The varsity team will likely have about 25, she said.

The recruiting of new players and varsity team cuts could leave many of the current players behind when the varsity team is formed.

As a club, the current women's ice hockey team has had a lot of success, Horst said.

Last season the club went 9-2-1 in the newly formed Central Collegiate Women's Hockey Association, Horst said. The club also won the league playoffs and was runner-up at the 1997

nationals which were held at the OSU ice rink.

The club's first home game this season will be played at 8 a.m., Oct. 18 at the OSU ice rink against Tonawanda.