COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Seniors Bailey Bram and Kelley Steadman, along with sophomore Christine Bestland are among the 30 nominees for the 15th annual Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, presented by Easton Foundations. An award for The USA Hockey Foundation, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is annually bestowed upon the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey.

Held in conjunction with the NCAA Women's Frozen Four, the 2012 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award will be awarded at a brunch ceremony on March 17 at the Greysolon Ballroom in Duluth, Minn.

A native of Brunkild, Manitoba, Bestland has recorded career-highs in goals, assists, and points this season. She finished the regular season with 22 goals and 33 assists for 55 points, ranking her second on the team in scoring. Her 1.77 points per game places her 12th in the country and her 1.06 assists per game is 10th in the nation. She is also ranked in the top 15 in the country in power play goals (7), shorthanded goals (2), and game-winning goals (4).

Bestland was a three-time College Hockey America Player of the Week and registered at least one point in 25 of Mercyhurst's 31 games, with 18 of those contests being multi-point games. She had two point-scoring streaks this season of at least eight games, with a season-long 11-game point scoring streak from December 10 through February 4. Bestland also had an eight-game multi-point scoring streak from October 28 to December 3.

Bram, a senior from Ste. Anne, Manitoba, has registered a career-high 66 points this year, including a career-high 40 assists. Her 26 goals is three shy of her personal-best 29 goals she scored as a sophomore. Bram's 2.28 points per game this season ranks second in the country, while her 66 points is the sixth highest total in the nation. Her 0.90 goals per game ranks sixth in the country, while her 1.38 assists per contest ranks second in the country. She also ranks second in the country with 11 power play goals and is tied for 11th with two shorthanded goals.

Bram was a five-time winner of the College Hockey America Player of the Week award and earned the CHA's Player of the Month award twice during the season. She had at least one point in 24 of her 29 games played, including 20 multi-point contests. Bram had an 11-game point scoring streak from October 8 through December 3. During the streak, she had multi-point games in eight straight and had at least three points in five consecutive contests. She scored a personal-best seven points against Lindenwood on October 29 and had three games of at least six points this season. Bram also registered two hat tricks this season and needs just one point to become the fourth Mercyhurst player in history to reach 200 points for her career.

Finally, Steadman, a native of Plattsburgh, New York, leads the country in goals per game, averaging 1.03 per contest. She also eads the country in power play goals with 12 and is tied for the national lead with four shorthanded goals. Steadman has established career-highs in goals this season (32), assists (18), and points (50). Her 1.61 points per game ranks 15th in the country.

Steadman won the College Hockey America Player of the Week award twice and also won the CHA's Player of the Month award on two different occasions. She had at least one point in 27 of her 31 games this season, including 15 multiple-point games. She scored at least one goal in 23 of 31 games this season, and recorded three hat tricks, including two four-goal games on the year. One of her four-goal games resulted in a 4-2 win at Robert Morris on January 20. She has three separate point scoring streaks of at least seven games. Steadman had an eight-game streak from October 8 through November 22, a seven-game streak from December 2 through January 6, and a career-long 11-game streak that began on January 13 and is still going. She currently leads College Hockey America in points (23), goals (15), power play goals (6), and shorthanded goals (2) in 12 conference games.

The 34 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey head coaches will select the top-10 finalists from among the group of 30 nominees, with the announcement taking place on March 1. A 13-member selection committee will choose the three finalists (announced March 8), as well as the award recipient, which will be announced live at the brunch ceremony in Duluth on March 17.

Tickets to the 15th annual Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Ceremony may be purchased by calling 719-538-1169 or by submitting a completed ticket form (located at PattyKaz.com). Individual seats are $65, while tables of 10 are available for $600.

2012 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Nominees

Christine Bestland, F, So., Mercyhurst University, Brunkild, Manitoba
Blake Bolden, D, Jr., Boston College, Stow, Ohio
Megan Bozek, D, Jr., Univ. of Minnesota, Buffalo Grove, Ill.
Bailey Bram, F, Sr., Mercyhurst University, Ste. Anne, Manitoba
Alex Carpenter, F, Fr., Boston College, Reading, Mass.
Kendall Coyne, F, Fr., Northeastern Univ., Palos Heights, Ill.
Brianna Decker, F, Jr., Univ. of Wisconsin, Dousman, Wis.
Jillian Dempsey, F, Jr., Harvard Univ., Winthrop, Mass.
Laura Fortino, D, Jr., Cornell Univ., Hamilton, Ontario
Thea Imbrogno, F, So., Robert Morris Univ., Etobicoke, Ontario
Haley Irwin, F, Sr., Univ. of Minnesota Duluth, Thunder Bay, Ontario
Brianne Jenner, F, So., Cornell Univ., Oakville, Ontario
Rebecca Johnston, F, Sr., Cornell Univ., Sudbury, Ontario
Amanda Kessel, F, So., Univ. of Minnesota, Madison, Wis.
Hilary Knight, F, Sr., Univ. of Wisconsin, Sun Valley, Idaho
Jocelyne Lamoureux, F, Jr., Univ. of North Dakota, Grand Forks, N.D.
Monique Lamoureux-Kolls, F/D, Jr., Univ. of North Dakota, Grand Forks, N.D.
Josephine Pucci, D, Jr., Harvard Univ., Pearl River, N.Y.
Jamie Lee Rattray, F, So., Clarkson Univ., Kanata, Ontario
Noora Raty, G, Jr., Univ. of Minnesota, Espoo, Finland
Alex Rigsby, G, So., Univ. of Wisconsin, Delafield, Wis.
Lauriane Rougeau, D, Jr., Cornell Univ., Beaconsfield, Quebec
Kelly Sabatine, F, Jr., St. Lawrence Univ., Hamilton, Ontario
Florence Schelling, G, Sr., Northeastern Univ., Oberengstringen, Switzerland
Jen Schoullis, F, Sr., Univ. of Minnesota, Erie, Pa.
Natalie Spooner, F, Sr., Ohio State Univ., Scarborough, Ontario
Kelley Steadman, F, Sr., Mercyhurst University, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Zuzana Tomcikova, G, Sr., Bemidji State Univ., Bratislava, Slovakia
Rebecca Vint, F, Fr., Robert Morris Univ., Caledon, Ontario
Jenn Wakefield, F, Sr., Boston Univ., Pickering, Ontario