(1) Ohio State at (6) Wisconsin
Wisconsin powered out to a 4-0 lead in the opening period thanks to two goals from Jesse Compher as well as tallies from Casey O’Brien and Britta Curl. After regrouping at the first intermission, Ohio State began their comeback. Jenn Gardiner lit the lamp in the first two minutes of the second to make it 4-1. In what would prove to be a pivotal moment, the Badgers looked like they extended the lead to 5-1, but the goal was called back for too many players. Emma Maltais scored later in the second to make it 4-2. In the third, Brooke Bink used a screen to make it a one-goal game early in the the period. Sophie Shirley broke a long scoreless streak to put the Badgers up 5-3 with about 13 to go. But Ohio State would not go quietly. Gardiner and Maltais each scored to tie the game at 5 and forceovertime. The Buckeyes held possession to start the frame, but on the Badgers’ first dangerous play in the extra frame, Gardiner was called for handling the puck and Wisconsin was awarded a penalty shot. Rookie Kirsten Simms flipped a backhander into the net to win the game for the Badgers in dramatic fashion, 6-5. Saturday’s game was a back and forth match where no one could break through until Laila Edwards crashed the net and slid the puck through Amanda Thiele and into the net to make it 1-0 Wisconsin with about 13 left in regulation. The Buckeyes were able to equalize on a power play with five minutes remaining. The game looked destined for overtime again when Madison Bizal found herself with enough open ice to pick her spot and put Ohio State up 2-1 with 55 seconds left in regulation. Wisconsin challenged the call for a hand pass, but the refs didn’t agree. The goal counted and UW was assessed a penalty for losing the challenge and having already used their timeout. On the ensuing power play, Bizal scored another wrister to earn Ohio State the 3-1 win, which also gave them the WCHA regular season championship. Wisconsin will host Minnesota State and Ohio State will host Bemidji State in the first round of the WCHA tournament next weekend.
Dartmouth at (2) Yale
Five different goal-scorers led the Bulldogs to a 6-1 win. Anna Bargman scored twice, Emma Seitz had a goal and two assists and Elle Hartje had three helpers to lead the team. Georgia Kraus was Dartmouth’s goal scorer.
Harvard at (2) Yale
Elle Hartje had a hat trick and two assists in the Bulldogs’ 11-1 blowout win over Harvard on Saturday. With the win, Yale took the ECAC regular season Championship. Anna Bargman and Claire Dalton each had a goal and three assists in the win. Unfortunately for Harvard, they head back to New Haven next weekend for a best-of-three series to open up the conference tournament.
(3) Colgate at Union
Danielle Serdachny padded her lead atop the national points leaderboard with a goal and two assists on Friday, bringing her season total to 61 points. Sammy Smigliani and Dara Greig each had a goal and an assist in Colgate’s 6-0 win.
(3) Colgate at RPI
Eight different Raiders collected two or more points and Elyssa Biederman tied the program record for points in a season by a freshman as Colgate closed their season with a 6-1 win. Marah Wagner netted a shorthanded goal for RPI in the loss. Colgate will host Princeton in the opening round of the ECAC tournament.
(4) Minnesota at St. Thomas
The Gophers out-shot St. Thomas 55-19, but the game was scoreless into the third period. Nicole Vallario scored her first of the season to give the Tommies the lead, but it lasted less than a minute as Taylor Heise scored her 24th of the season to even the score 1-1. Neither team could find the go-ahead goal in regulation, but Abbey Murphy ended it midway through the overtime period to give Minnesota the 2-1 win. In the second game, Abigail Boreen and Lotti Odnoga traded goals in the first to make it 1-1 at the first period break. Heise and Boreen added goals in the second to put Minnesota ahead 3-1. Anna Solheim cut the lead to 3-2 early in the third, but St. Thomas couldn’t find the equalizer and Murphy’s goal midway through put the game out of reach at 4-2. Over the weekend, St. Thomas goalies Saskia Maurer and Alexa Dobchuck combined to make 108 saves.
(5) Northeastern vs. Boston University (home and home)
Alina Müller had three goals and an assist and Maureen Murphy had a goal and three assists to lead Northeastern in a 5-1 win on Friday. Murphy recorded her 200th career point on an assist on Mueller’s first goal of the game. Kate Holmes scored her first goal of the season to ice the game in the third. Nadia Mattivi scored for BU in the loss. On Saturday, the Huskies earned the program’s third-ever 30-win season – and the first one that was reached during the regular season. Ten different Huskies tallied points as Mia Brown, Molly Griffin, Peyton Anderson and Katy Knoll each lit the lamp.
(7) Quinnipiac at St. Lawrence
The Saints took the lead in the second when Shailynn Snow put away the rebound on a Julia Gosling shot. But Quinnipiac responded quickly as Alexa Hoskin was stopped on her initial shot, but was able to put back her own rebound to make it a 1-1 game. Snow had the primary assist on the second goal, passing to Taylor Lum, who slid the puck into the net to make it 2-1. Not done yet, Snow tipped in Chloé Puddifant’s shot to dive St. Lawrence the 3-1 lead. The Bobcats pulled their goalie with more than three minutes left and Aly McLeod took advantage, solidifying the win with an empty-netter to make it 4-1.
(7) Quinnipiac at (9) Clarkson
The Golden Knights pulled an upset on their rival, earning a 2-1 win in the final regular season match for both teams. Jenna Goodwin and Gabrielle David scored less than two minutes apart in the first half of the opening frame and then the Golden Knights defense went to work. Quinnipiac pulled within one with a late power play goal from Lexie Adzija, but Clarkson held on to their lead to get the win.
(8) Minnesota Duluth at Bemidji State
UMD coach Maura Crowell earned her 150th career win as a head coach this weekend as her team swept the Beavers to lose out the regular season. On Friday, the Bulldogs tied a program record for most team shutouts in a season with 12 and Emma Soderberg set a new program record with her 21st career clean sheet. UMD held BSU to just 12 shots on the night. Naomi Rogge and Mary Kate O’Brien scored twice and Anneke Linser and Ashton Bell each lit the lamp once to lead UMD to the win. In the second game, Reece Hunt struck for the Beavers just 37 seconds into the game to give Bemidji a 1-0 lead. Mannon McMahon evened the game up to send the teams to the locker room tied 1-1. Then the Bulldogs began to pull away. Taylor Anderson scored twice and Gabbie Hughes also lit the lamp to make it a 4-1 game. Tova Henderson scored her first as a Bulldog to close out the 5-1 win. It was UMD coach Maura Crowell’s 150th win at the helm for Minnesota Duluth.
Princeton at (9) Clarkson
The Tigers jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first period thanks to Sarah Fillier. But Clarkson was not ready to let the game out of their grasp. Stephanie Markowski scored midway through the second to make it 2-1. Princeton responded with a power play goal from Emerson O’Leary to make it 3-1, but Sarah Swiderski had an extra-attacker goal of her own minutes later to make it 3-2. Markowski scored her second of the game to tie it at 3 heading into the second intermission. Just :39 into the third, Maggie Connors scored a power play goal of her own to put Princeton ahead 4-3. Markowski completed her hat trick a few minutes later and a winner could not be found in regulation. Clarkson got possession on the opening faceoff in overtime and Haley Winn’s shot rebounded onto Cherkowski’s stick. Her goal just 22 seconds into overtime ended the game with a 5-4 win for Clarkson.
(10) Penn State at RIT
Eleri MacKay had two goals and an assist and Courtney Correia added three helpers to power Penn State to an 8-1 win on Friday. Jordyn Bear scored for RIT in the loss. The Nittany Lions won their 15th straight on Saturday thanks to goals from Lexi Bedier, Izzy Heminger and Kiara Zanon to lead the team to a 3-1 win. Jessie Burks was RIT’s goal-scorer. Penn State will face Lindenwood in a best of three series to open up the CHA playoffs.
(11) Vermont at New Hampshire
The Catamounts battled back from behind twice to earn a 3-3 tie on Friday and clinch home-ice in the opening round of the Hockey East tournament. Natalie Mlynkova scored the only goal in the opening frame to give UVM a 1-0 lead. But the Wildcats responded. They reeled off three straight goals to have a 3-1 lead by the opening minutes of the third period. Shea Verrier, Brianna Brooks and Lauren Martin each lit the lamp for UNH. Sini Karjalainen cut the lead in half midway through the third and Theresa Schafzahl’s power play goal late in the period forced overtime. There was still no game-winner, so it took Mlynkova’s bar down shot as the only score of the shootout to earn the extra point for Vermont. On Saturday, Vermont matched the regular season win record they set last season with a 3-1 win. Evelyne Blais-Savoie scored in the second and then Mlynkova added two more to put the Catamounts up 3-0. Emily Rickwood scored in the third to ruin the shutout.
(15) Boston College vs. (13) Providence (home and home)
In the first game, Boston College took an early 3-0 lead thanks to goals from Gabby Roy, Katie Pyne and Alexie Guay in the first. Noemi Neubauerova got one back in the second, but Abby Newhook scored two consecutive goals to put the game out of reach. Rachel Weiss added a late goal for Providence, but BC took the 5-2 win. Hannah Bilka racked up four assists for the Eagles in the win. The teams skated to a scoreless first on Saturday. But Lindsay Bocha scored in the second and third and Sara Hjalmarsson added a goal to make it a 3-0 win for the Friars.
(14) Cornell at RPI
The teams played a very even match through the first half of the game. McKenna Van Gelder scored on the power play late in the 1st to put Cornell up 1-0, but RPI’s Ellie Kaiser tied it just past the midpoint of the game to tie it at one. With Gabbie Rud’s goal a few minutes later, the Big Red started to pull away. She scored again 1:01 into the third to make it 4-1 and Gillis Frechette’s goal :59 later made it 4-1. RPI was able to cut the lead to two with a power play goal from Marah Wagner before four minutes had elapsed, but that’s as close as it would get. Lily Delianedis got the goal back in less than a minute to put the game away at 5-2 and Frechette’s late insurance goal solidified a 6-2 win.
(14) Cornell at Union
Izzy Daniel scored twice during a five minute major power play for spearing and that would prove to be the difference for Cornell. Paige Greco’s goal late in the first put Union on the board first, but Kaitlin Jockims’ tip in early in the second tied it up and then Daniels went to work to earn the 3-1 win. The Big Red will travel to Clarkson for the first round of the ECAC tournament.
