January 11, 2011
Un-identical Twins
Cornell defensemen Fortino, Rougeau nearly inseparable but hardly alike
by Mike Zhe/
Laura Fortino
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They’re the twin backbones of the Cornell defense, but sophomores Laura Fortino and Lauriane Rougeau are anything but identical.
The 5-foot-6 Fortino is a bundle of energy, on the ice and off. Likened by her coaches to a hummingbird for her penchant for doing everything at full speed, she became the program’s first ever first-team All-American after collecting 34 points as a freshman.
The 5-foot-8 Rougeau, meanwhile, is the picture of composure. Poised and steady, she was named the Rookie of the Year in ECAC Hockey and a second-team All-American after putting up 32 points last year.
Off the ice, the two defensive partners, fast friends and roommates share both a major – both are enrolled in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences – and living quarters. And they stay pretty much in character.
“She’s always keeping me in line,” laughed Fortino. “She’s always on schedule. I’ll be running behind and I’m like, ‘OK, Rougeau, I’m coming.’”
There are a lot of smiles in Ithaca these days. One season after reaching the NCAA championship game, the Big Red opened the new year as the No. 1 team in the nation, their 13-1-0 record (8-0-0 ECAC Hockey) justifying all the preseason accolades they received.
“We expected this team to be strong,” said Cornell coach Doug Derraugh, a former All-American for the Big Red men's team. “Obviously, it wasn’t just us. We’ve been pretty solid from the start on.”
If this year’s strong first half was expected, last year’s run to the title game was largely unexpected. With standout forward Rebecca Johnston and touted recruit Brianne Jenner spending the year with the Canadian national team, there was a sense that the Big Red were missing some key pieces.
Enter Fortino and Rougeau. Largely unknown to each other coming in, they quickly formed a bond and a defense pairing that by year’s end would be the most productive in Division I. “We knew they were going to be strong, but in all honesty, they were even better than I anticipated,” said Derraugh. “Really mature. They came in and had no problem adjusting to the NCAA game and our system.”
Nor to each other.
“I don’t even have to look anymore,” said Rougeau. “I know where she is on the ice and I can make a pass to her.”
Cornell finished first in ECAC Hockey last winter and won the league tournament by beating Clarkson in the final. In the NCAAs, they stormed into Harvard and won an NCAA quarterfinal, 6-2, and then beat Mercyhurst in the semis before falling to Minnesota-Duluth in triple-overtime, 3-2, in the national championship game in Minneapolis.
“It’s funny,” said Fortino. “We were talking about that the other day. Looking back, we were saying, ‘Wow. I can’t believe we did that.’
With Johnston (8-12-20) and Jenner (11-9-20) inserted into the lineup and leading the team in scoring this season, the Big Red have been almost unstoppable. Of their 13 wins, 10 have been by at least three goals, with the only loss coming in overtime to No. 4 Mercyhurst, 4-3. They ascended to the No. 1 spot in the poll in November and have been there ever since.
“I don’t put a whole lot of stock in that,” said Derraugh. “One of the things we’re talking about is getting better each week. It’s going to come down to the playoffs. It’s not like the NHL playoffs where it’s a seven-game series. It’s a one-game deal.”
With less of a scoring burden on their shoulders this year, both Fortino and Rougeau have both racked up 11 assists. Fortino has four goals on top of that, with Rougeau still looking for her first tally. And that doesn’t even address their defense -- at 0.86 goals per game, Cornell leads Division 1 in goals allowed.
Rougeau is from Beaconsfield, Quebec, south of Montreal; Fortino, from Hamilton, Ont. Though they didn’t have much contact growing up, aside from a stint on a Canadian Under-18 team, they’ve become close, taking many of the same classes and rehashing the day’s events in their room each night.
“We spend every minute of the day mostly together,” said Fortino. The two are among six players from Cornell who will take a hiatus to join Canada’s Under-22 team for the MLP Cup in Switzerland Jan. 4-8, a group that includes forwards Catherine White, Jessica Campbell and Chelsea Karpenko. Goalie Amanda Mazzotta was also chosen, but will sit it out due to injury.
Canada will be a heavy favorite to win the competition. And, when that’s done, Cornell will be on a short list of contenders for the NCAA prize. The Big Red are enjoying the view from the top, but couldn’t have gotten there with their un-identical twin defensemen, who are enjoying every minute of this collaboration.
“It’s been great,” said Fortino. “I enjoy playing with her. She’s such a strong, powerful player. She takes control of the game with how strong she is on the puck.”
“It’s been awesome,” said Rougeau. “She’s a great defensive player. She brings a lot of energy to the team. When she has the puck, she can go, take it down the ice and score goals.”
