46 | MAY 2 • 2024
J
N
H
ockey is more than
just a sport for Elyssa
Biederman.
“I’ve been playing hockey for
as long as I can remember,
” she
said. “It’s a part of me. I can’t
imagine myself not playing
hockey. My coaches and team-
mates have had a huge impact
on my life.
”
The latest stop in Biederman’s
hockey journey is Colgate
University, a private college in
Hamilton, N.Y., with an enroll-
ment of about 3,000 students.
Biederman, 19, is a sopho-
more at Colgate and a mem-
ber of the school’s Division I
women’s hockey team, which
was ranked No. 3 in the nation
and was one of the country’s
highest-scoring teams this past
season.
A 5-foot-1 forward,
Biederman was a major rea-
son why the Raiders (32-7-1)
played in the Frozen Four,
college hockey’s version of the
iconic college basketball Final
Four, for the second time in
program history.
No. 2-ranked
Wisconsin beat
Colgate 3-1 in the
national semifinals
in late March at the
Whittemore Center
Arena on the campus
of the University of
New Hampshire in
Durham, N.H., but
Biederman still loved being on
the center stage of women’s col-
legiate hockey.
“It was crazy there,
” the
Birmingham Groves High
School graduate said. “I soaked
everything in. It was a great
reward for all we achieved this
season.
”
Biederman scored or assisted
on all three Colgate goals in its
3-1 win over No. 6 Cornell that
sent the Raiders to the Frozen
Four for the first time
since 2018. Her goal
was an empty-netter
late in the game.
The All-ECAC
Third Team selec-
tion had 17 goals
and 33 assists while
playing in all 40
Colgate games during
the 2023-24 season, with an
impressive plus-minus rating
of +40. That statistic reflects
the number of goals your team
scores and allows while you’re
on the ice.
Biederman had somewhat
similar statistics of 17 goals
and 21 assists in 40 games as
a freshman, but she feels she
made big strides as a hockey
player from her freshman to
sophomore seasons.
“I was very happy with how
much I improved,
” she said.
“I was more used to the pace
and physicality of Division I
hockey. People come at you
faster and you have to get the
puck off your stick faster at this
level, especially when you’re
playing against girls who are
three or four years older than
you.
“I also feel I’m doing a better
job now of balancing school
and being a Division I athlete.
The academics (at Colgate) are
rigorous, but they’re preparing
me well for my life after college
and after hockey.
”
Biederman is majoring in
biology with a minor in sociol-
ogy. After her hockey play-
ing days are over, one career
option, she said, is getting a
master’s degree in kinesiology
and pursuing a career in ortho-
pedics.
But first … Biederman would
love to play in the Women’s
Professional Hockey League
after getting her degree at
Colgate.
“That could open doors for
me to be a hockey coach or
scout,
” she said.
Biederman is enjoying her
time at Colgate, which has a
small population of Jewish stu-
dents.
“I try to be involved with the
Jewish community (at Colgate)
as much as I can, but it’s tough
during the season,
” she said.
She’s a member of the
Student Athlete Advisory
Elyssa Biederman’s sophomore season on
the Colgate University women’s hockey team
includes a trip to the Frozen Four.
Ice Cold
STEVE STEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
SPORTS
COLGATE UNIVERSITY
Elyssa Biederman
Elyssa Biederman had 17 goals
and 33 assists in 40 games this
past season for the Colgate
University women’s hockey
team.
OLIVIA HOKANSON/COLGATE ATHLETICS