Wisconsin's Casey O'Brien has been named the 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner. O'Brien becomes the sixth student-athlete from Wisconsin and the 10th Western Collegiate Hockey Association representative to earn the honor. The honor which is awarded annually to the top player, in NCAA Division I Women’s Ice Hockey by The USA Hockey Foundation. 

O'Brien and the Badgers will be playing for the national title on Sunday, March 23 at 3 PM CT after yesterday's 6-2 win over Minnesota in the NCAA Semifinals. The Badger forward currently leads the nation in points per game (2.20) and assists per game (1.55). O'Brien ranks eighth in the country in goals per game (.65). She also leads the nation in points (88) and assists (62). 

At the 2025 Kwik Trip WCHA Final Faceoff, O'Brien helped Wisconsin claim its 11th  Final Faceoff Championship title while being named to the All-Tournament team and earning the tournament's Most Outstanding Player honor. O'Brien helped the Badgers earn their 10th WCHA Regular Season Championship crown as the team earned a 25-1-2 record in WCHA play this season.

The fifth-year forward was named the WCHA's Player and Forward of the Year while also earning All-WCHA First Team honors. O'Brien recorded 52 points (17g, 35a) in 28 league games this season and earned two game-winning goals. O'Brien was named the HCA National Co-Player of the Month for September alongside teammate Caroline Harvey. O'Brien was also named the WCHA Forward of the Month for her efforts in September and October and earned three WCHA Forward of the Week honors (Sept. 30, Oct. 7, Feb. 10). Among her other accomplishments this season, O'Brien became the Wisconsin program record holder in career points on March 1 against Bemidji State as she finished the game with 265 career points, surpassing Hilary Knight's (2007-12) previous record of 262 career points.  

O'Brien was also a finalist for the 2024-25 WCHA Most Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year honor and volunteered at the American Family Children’s Hospital Bucky Locker Room Patio, the Ronald McDonald House and Augie’s Lunches with Love.

The WCHA is now home to 10 previous Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award recipients, as O'Brien has become the league's third honoree in the last four years with Ohio State's Sophie Jaques (2023) and Minnesota's Taylor Heise (2022). 

Past WCHA Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award Winners
2005 - Krissy Wendell, Minnesota 
2006 - Sara Bauer, Wisconsin
2009 - Jessie Vetter, Wisconsin
2011 - Meghan Duggan, Wisconsin 
2012 - Brianna Decker, Wisconsin
2013 - Amanda Kessel, Minnesota
2017 - Ann-Renée Desbiens, Wisconsin
2022 - Taylor Heise, Minnesota
2023 - Sophie Jaques, Ohio State
2025 - Casey O'Brien, Wisconsin

SELECTION PROCESS
The selection process commenced in early February when NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches were asked to nominate players for the award. Players who were nominated by multiple coaches were then placed on an official ballot, which was returned to the coaches to vote for the ten finalists. The three finalists, including the recipient of the 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, will be chosen by a 13-person selection committee made up of NCAA Division I women's ice hockey coaches, representatives of print and broadcast media, and an at-large member and representative of USA Hockey, the national governing body for the sport of ice hockey in the United States.

ABOUT THE PATTY KAZMAIER MEMORIAL AWARD
An award of The USA Hockey Foundation, the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is annually presented to the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey. Selection criteria includes outstanding individual and team skills, sportsmanship, performance in the clutch, personal character, competitiveness and a love of hockey. Consideration is also given to academic achievement and civic involvement. For a full list of previous honorees, click HERE. 

ABOUT PATTY KAZMAIER
The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award is named in honor of the late Patty Kazmaier, who was a four-year varsity letter-winner and All-Ivy League defenseman at Princeton University from 1981-86. An accomplished athlete who helped lead the Tigers to the Ivy League Championship in three consecutive seasons (1981-84), Patty Kazmaier-Sandt died Feb. 15, 1990, at the age of 28 following a long struggle with a rare blood disease.

For more information on the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, follow the league at WCHA.com and on its social platforms:  X, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.