The William Smith College ice hockey team begins the 2017-18 season, its fourth season as a varsity program, this weekend, Oct. 26-27, with a pair of games against Salve Regina at The Cooler. Faceoff on Friday is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
The Herons completed the 2016-17 season with a 7-12-6 overall record. William Smith played its best hockey down the stretch, finishing February with a 3-1-2 record. The Herons closed out the regular season with a win and a tie over then No. 8 Oswego. It was William Smith's first win over a nationally ranked opponent. The Herons posted a 4-9-5 mark in conference play, more conference wins than their first two seasons combined, finishing seventh in the ECAC West.
 
William Smith will begin its fourth season in a new conference, the United Collegiate Hockey Conference. The Herons will be joined in the UCHC by Elmira, Utica, Manhattanville, Stevenson, Neumann, Chatham, King's and Lebanon Valley.
 
Head Coach Jaime Totten is now in her fourth season behind the bench for William Smith. She has guided the Herons to an 18-48-9 record in their first three seasons. She returns a veteran laden team that is confident and ready to compete at the highest level.
 
Here is a position-by-position look at the Herons.
 
Goaltending:
 
Senior Maggie Salmon returns in goal after winning the 2016-17 ECAC West Defensive Player of the Year award. She logged 1060:23 minutes between the pipes, posting a 6-8-4 overall record. William Smith's first major award winner posted a program-record 1.92 goals against average and a .951 save percentage, the sixth best in Division III. She made a career-high 58 saves in the Herons' upset victory over the Lakers last February. Senior Emily Spencer looks to provide depth off of the bench for the Herons.
 
Defense:
 
The defense remains intact from last season and will be led by senior captain Rebecca Begley. She is one of two players to have seen action in all 75 of William Smith's varsity games. Begley finished her junior season with 10 points (3g, 7a). She scored the game-winning goal in the Herons 1-0 win over Salve Regina on Oct. 29. Sarah Garrett will bring veteran leadership to the table this year. The AHCA All-American Scholar has seen action in 49 career games.
 
Juniors Maura Mulligan, Laura Rollins, and Egan Sachs-Hecht will look to anchor William Smith's defensive pairs and pitch in on the offensive end of the ice. Mulligan compiled 11 points (4g, 7a) last year and shared the team lead with four power-play tallies. Rollins was a strong stay-at-home defender last year, especially on the penalty kill. She finished the year with a team-high 32 blocked shots. On the offensive end of the ice, Rollins chipped in a goal and five assists for six points. Sachs-Hecht transitioned to defender last season and was a solid D partner to Rollins. Sachs-Hecht chipped in a goal and an assist.
 
Forward:
 
Senior captains Krista Federow and Catherine Linehan lead a group of talented forwards that returns all of its offense from last season. Federow, who joins Begley as the only other player to have seen action in all 75 of William Smith's varsity games, led the team in scoring for the third consecutive year. She had a team-best 15 points and 10 assists during her junior season. Federow is William Smith's all-time leader goals (28), assists (28), and points (56). Linehan played in 22 games last year, recording four points (1g, 3a). She assisted on the game-winning goal against Oswego. In 70 career games, Linehan has 20 points (10g, 10a).
 
Senior Grace Durham, Kiley Fewster, and Lizzy Weingast also return for a fourth season. Durham played in 16 games last season. In 61 career games, she has 11 points. Fewster played both forward and defense last year, tallying six points (2g, 4a). She has missed just two games in her first three seasons and has recorded 21 points on 12 goals and nine assists. Fewster's three career shorthanded goals are the most by a Heron skater. Weingast saw action in three games last year.
 
Juniors Lindsay Brown, Stephanie Hampton, and Jordan Roetzer add a veteran scoring touch to the forward corps. Brown recorded eight points (4g, 4a) last season. None of her goals were bigger than her game-winning goal against then No. 8 Oswego. Brown also tallied a game-winner against Cortland. Hampton was third on the team with 12 points, including team-leading six goals. She contributed a goal and an assist in the upset win over the Lakers. Roetzer was second on the team with 13 points (4g, 9a) in her first season in Geneva. The transfer from Manhattanville skated on William Smith's second line and set a Heron single-game record with three assists against Chatham on Nov. 18.
 
Sophomores Kate Klimaszewski, Taylor Morash, and Gina Scibetta look to build off of solid rookie campaigns. Klimaszewski recorded four goals and four assists for eight points, scoring the Herons' first goal of the season at Salve Regina last October. Morash was sixth on the team with nine points scoring a pair of goals in a 4-2 victory over Chatham. Scibetta also finished her season with eight points, notching the game winner in the season-opening win over the Seahawks. She also added an empty-netter against Oswego. Fellow sophomore Morgan McMinn will look to add depth for William Smith.
 
Schedule:
 
After opening the season this weekend, the Herons will have a week off before embarking on their first road trip of the year. William Smith will open UCHC play Nov. 10-11 at Stevenson. The Herons will close out 2017 on New Year's Eve, wrapping up a two-game set with Connecticut College in New London, Conn. William Smith faces one team that is ranked in the D3Hockey.com and USCHO.com preseason polls, No. 5 Elmira. The Herons will take on the Soaring Eagles Feb. 3 in Pine Valley, N.Y., and Feb. 4, at The Cooler for William Smith's first senior night.