Boston University head coach Brian Durocher announced on Monday morning that rising senior forwards Jesse Compher and Nara Elia will serve as co-captains for the 2020-21 season. Rising senior forward Kristina Schuler and rising junior forward Kaleigh Donnelly will serve as assistant captains.
“I am excited to announce the four student-athletes that will form our leadership group for the 2020-2021 season,” Durocher said in a team statement. “Their leadership up to this point has generated confidence and support from their teammates. I know that they have studied excellent captains like Sammy Davis, Natasza Tarnowski, and Reagan Rust, just to name a few.
“They will be able to reflect on the lessons learned over the past couple of years. My staff and I look forward to the focus, concern and direction they will bring both on and off the ice. Jesse, Nara, Kristina and Kaleigh are quality individuals who will lead by example next season.”
Coming off a sophomore season that saw her post 61 points (17g, 44a) in 37 games, Compher skated in 26 games last season after missing the first nine with injury, posting 29 points (13g, 16a). Compher’s two short-handed goals led BU last season.
A 2019 All-American and 2019 top 10 finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award, the Northbrook, Ill. native has 39-77-116 totals in 100 career games as a Terrier. Compher won gold with the United States at the 2019 Women’s World Championship, and was named to the 2020 roster as well.
Elia had a career season this past year, notching 11 goals and 19 assists for 30 points, career-highs in each category, in addition to a team-high five game-winning goals. Elia’s shooting percentage of 14.3% was third on the team for 2019-20. Through 108 games on her career, the Saskatoon, Sask. native has 28-34-62 numbers.
Schuler also had a career year during the 2019-20 campaign with eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points, all career-bests. Her plus-15 rating was third-best for the Terriers. On her career with at BU, the Webster, N.Y. native has posted 18 goals and 28 assists for 46 points in 107 games.
Through her first two seasons with the Terriers, Donnelly has five goals and 29 assists for 34 points in 72 games, accumulating 17 points each year. The Wellesley, Mass. native’s four goals in 2019-20 were a career-high.
Compher and Elia will be the 18th and 19th captains in program history, while Donnelly and Schuler will be the team’s first assistant captains since former Terriers Sammy Davis, Victoria Bach, and Erin O’Neil donned the ‘A’ on their sweaters during the 2017-18 campaign.
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