University of Maine sophomore winger Rahel Enzler will get to play for a medal at the Winter Olympic games in China after her Swiss team avenged a pool play loss to the Russian Olympic Committee with a 4-2 victory over ROC in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Switzerland will take on undefeated Canada in the semifinals on Monday with the United States facing Finland in the other semifinal.
The losers will play for the bronze medal on Wednesday and the winners will battle for the gold medal on Thursday.
Enzler didn’t register a goal or an assist in the quarterfinal victory over ROC, but did have two shots on goal during 8 minutes and 30 seconds of playing time.
The 21-year-old Enzler hasn’t scored yet for the Swiss and has five shots on goal in five games while averaging 11 minutes of playing time per game. She is minus-8 in plus-minus although minus-five of that came against the Canadians.
Players receive a plus one if they are on the ice when their team scores and even-strength or shorthanded goal and a minus one if the opposing team scores one.
Canada beat the Swiss 12-1 in their Olympic Group A division opener on Feb. 3. The Swiss are 2-3 in the tournament.
Enzler had three assists in 20 games at UMaine this season and will be returning to the team after the Olympics.
Enzler is the only one of the five former or current Black Bears playing in the Olympics.
Former UMaine players Tereza Vanisova and Vendula Pribylova and their Czech Republic team gave Team USA a spirited battle on Friday night but the Americans broke a 1-1 tie 6:49 into the third period, and added a power play with 3:09 remaining before finishing off a 4-1 win with an empty-net goal.
Vanisova assisted on the Czech Republic goal and she concluded the tournament notching a point in all five games and leading the Czechs in scoring with six points on two goals and five assists. UMaine ‘s all-time career scoring leader (63 goals-66 assists-129 points in 129 games) also led her team in plus-minus at plus-five and averaged nearly 21 minutes of playing time per game.
She had nine shots on goal.
Pribylova, Vanisova’s UMaine teammate for all four seasons, went pointless but generated 12 shots on goal and was even in plus-minus while averaging 14:15 of ice time per game.
The Czech Republic, making its first ever appearance in the Olympics, wound up 2-2-1.
Former UMaine player Michelle Weis, current Black Bear Amalie Andersen and their Danish team also played in the Olympics for the first time and they wound up going 1-3 and failing to qualify for the quarterfinals.
Weis had a goal and an assist and seven shots on goal while averaging 22 minutes of playing time per game. She was minus-5.
Andersen, a junior winger at UMaine who was a defenseman for the Danes, had three shots on goal and averaged 18 minutes per game. She was even in plus-minus.
Andersen will also return to the UMaine lineup soon.