BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- After a historic postseason run, the College of Saint Benedict Bennies women's ice hockey was well represented on the postseason awards list released by the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

 

Following the program's first-ever MIAC Playoff Championship, four Bennies earned All-MIAC recognition while three players were named to the conference's All-Playoff Team.

Sophomore defense standout  Merrill Delich (Andover, Minn.) earned first-team All-MIAC honors for the first time in her career, becoming the 21st player in program history from College of Saint Benedict to receive first-team recognition.

 

Three other Bennies were named Honorable Mention All-MIAC selections, including first-year goaltender Lexi Badali (St. John, Ind.), junior forward Shae Stinnett (North Oaks, Minn.) and first-year center Helena Siska (Naperville, Ill.).

Badali and Stinnett were also named to the MIAC All-Playoff Team, joined by sophomore forward Jorja Jusczak (Moose Lake, Minn.).

This group of standouts helped lead Saint Benedict to a 16-7-4 overall record and the MIAC Playoff Championship — the first conference playoff title in program history. The Bennies' postseason run also secured the program's first-ever berth in the NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Tournament. Saint Benedict will face No. 5 Amherst at 2 p.m. (CDT) on Saturday, March 14 in Amherst, Massachusetts.

The 2025–26 season has been one of the most successful in program history. In the MIAC semifinals, the Bennies earned their first conference playoff victory with a 4–2 win over No. 7 Hamline before defeating Gustavus Adolphus in the championship game to claim the league title and automatic NCAA bid. Saint Benedict also set a new program record with 16 wins this season, surpassing the previous mark of 14 victories set by the 1999–2000 and 2002–03 teams. The Bennies entered the MIAC tournament as the No. 3 seed after finishing tied for third in the conference standings with a 9–6–3 record.

 

MIAC coaches selected 20 players as All-Conference, with eleven more receiving honorable mention distinction. All awards were nominated by and voted on by the ten MIAC head women's hockey coaches, and only statistics from regular-season MIAC contests were considered for conference honors; any nominated player not selected as All-Conference but still receiving votes from at least three coaches was named honorable mention.

Delich appeared in all 27 games this season and finished with four goals and 10 assists for 14 points. She recorded 49 shots, blocked 11 shots and scored three power-play goals, which ranks eighth in the MIAC and 49th in DIII.

Stinnett earned her first career Honorable Mention All-MIAC and MIAC All-Playoff Team selections after finishing with 10 goals and seven assists for 17 points. She totaled 76 shots and recorded four game-winning goals, tied for second in the MIAC and 16th in DIII. Stinnett also scored twice in the Bennies' semifinal victory over Hamline. This season she had a run of three straight games when she tallied two goals each contest.

Siska earned Honorable Mention All-MIAC honors in her first season after leading the team with 12 goals, which ranked fourth in the MIAC. She also tied for the team lead with 10 assists and finished with a team-best 22 points, ranking 12th in the conference. Siska recorded 74 shots, two game-winning goals and 17 blocked shots while finishing fifth in the MIAC in face-off wins with 225 victories on 474 attempts.

 

Badali played 21 games in goal and posted a 1.75 goals-against average, tied for fourth in the MIAC and 29th in DIII. She also had a .941 save percentage, which ranked second in the conference and 20th in DIII. She totaled 588 saves — an average of 28 per game — and compiled a 12-6-3 record while recording two shutouts in her first season with Saint Benedict.

 

Jusczak played a key role in the Bennies' postseason run, scoring goals in playoff victories over Hamline and Gustavus Adolphus. Her first-period goal in the championship game gave Saint Benedict a 1–0 lead it never relinquished on the way to the MIAC title. For the season, Jusczak finished with five goals and three assists for eight points, along with 64 shots, 10 blocked shots and one game-winning goal.