One of the greatest Division III women’s hockey players of all time, Andrea Peterson is in a league of her own when looking at the rich history of the Gustavus women’s hockey program. Peterson is the only player in the history of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) to be selected Player of the Year all four seasons. Recognized as the most competitive skater on the ice whenever she played, Peterson earned All-America honors all four years and finished her collegiate career as the 2006-07 Laura Hurd Award winner (Division III Player of the Year) and the Gustavus Female Athlete of the Year.
Peterson led the nation in scoring as a defender during her freshman and senior seasons and holds the Division III record for most career points scored by a defender. Her 185 career points are the most in program history and rank third all-time among all Division III women’s hockey players. Peterson also holds the program record with 107 career assists, ranking second in Division III history, while her 78 career goals rank second at Gustavus.
Impressive hands paired with phenomenal shooting ability allowed Peterson to score 23 power play goals, which ranks fourth in Division III history. Playing her best in big moments, Peterson led the Gusties to three MIAC regular season championships, four MIAC playoff championships, and four NCAA tournament appearances, highlighted by an NCAA third-place finish in 2005. During her four seasons, Peterson and the Gusties accumulated an overall record of 94-18-3 and went 67-4-1 in the MIAC.
After graduating from Gustavus in 2007 with a major in health and physical education, Peterson stayed at the College as an assistant coach until 2011. Peterson was a physical education teacher at New Prague Area Schools from 2012-18 where she also served as the head girls’ hockey coach. Since 2015, Peterson has taught at Prior Lake-Savage Area Schools and was an assistant girls’ hockey coach at Prior Lake from 2019-22. Peterson has now returned to Gustavus and will serve as an assistant coach this season. Andrea lives in Minneapolis.
