Gophers fall to Wisconsin in WCHA Final Faceoff semifinals
A power-play goal from Peyton Hemp with 3:44 remaining regulation gave the Gophers a late lead in their WCHA Final Faceoff semifinal against Wisconsin and Skylar Vetter made 38 saves, but it wasn't enough as they fell to the Badgers in overtime, 4-3.
Kirsten Simms put the Badgers up within the first minute of the contest, but Josefin Bouveng and Ella Huber gave the Gophers a 2-1 first-intermission lead. Simms converted a second-period power play to knot the score before Hemp's goal put Minnesota ahead again. Unfortunately, Casey O'Brien was able to even the score with just 8.8 seconds remaining, banking a shot off of Vetter into the net. Vetter made 3 saves in OT but couldn't stop a backhander from Lacey Eden 7:59 into the extra period, sending Wisconsin to the WCHA Championship Game. Ava McNaughton made 20 saves for the Badgers. Bouveng led the Gophers in scoring, adding an assist to her goal.
First semifinal: Ohio State 5, Minnesota Duluth 0 – Buckeyes netminder Raygan Kirk needed only 17 saves to post a clean sheet as OSU shut out UMD for the fourth time in five meetings this season. At the other end of the ice, Joy Dunne & Kiara Zanon scored 44 seconds apart in the first period and the Buckeyes never looked back. Dunne added a later assist and Emma Peschel also tallied a goal & an assist for OSU, while Hailey MacLeod stopped 39 shots for the Bulldogs.
Championship: Wisconsin 6, Ohio State 3 – Coming off their overtime semifinal victory, the Badgers scored on two of their first three shots on goal against the Buckeyes to go up 2-0. OSU pulled within one early in the second period, but Wisconsin rattled off the next four goals – including two on the power play and one short-handed – to extend their lead to 6-1. Laila Edwards & Casey O'Brien each recorded two goals & two assists for the Badgers and Ava McNaughton made 30 saves. Hannah Bilka lit the lamp twice for the Buckeyes in the final five minutes and Raygan Kirk stopped 16 shots.
All-Tournament Team –
F - Laila Edwards, Wisconsin
F - Casey O'Brien, Wisconsin
F - Kirsten Simms, Wisconsin
D - Emma Peschel, Ohio State
D - Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin
G - Ava McNaughton, Wisconsin
Most Outstanding Player – Casey O'Brien
NCAA Tournament – Single-elimination
Quarterfinal – #5-seeded Minnesota Golden Gophers (27-9-2)
at #4-seeded Clarkson Golden Knights (32-4-2)
Saturday, March 16 at 3:00 p.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. CT
Cheel Arena, Potsdam, NY
The Golden Gophers are headed to their third-straight Big Dance but will have to go on the road to open the tournament. Earning the #5 seed, they will head to northern New York state for a meeting against the 4th-seeded Clarkson University Golden Knights at Cheel Arena in Potsdam. Game time this Saturday, March 16, is set for 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT.
Ticket information is to be announced and we'll share it when it becomes available. More information about this game will be posted in our regular issue of the Penalty Box Post on Wednesday.
Other NCAA Tournament Matchups – First Round
Cornell (24-7-1) vs. Stonehill (21-15-2) – at Colgate
Thursday, March 14 at 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT
Minnesota Duluth (20-13-4) vs. Connecticut (25-7-5) – at Ohio State
Thursday, March 14 at 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT
St. Lawrence (27-10-0) vs. Penn State (22-12-3) – at Wisconsin
Thursday, March 14 at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT
Quarterfinals
Cornell / Stonehill at #3-seed Colgate (31-6-1)
Saturday, March 16 at 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT
St. Lawrence / Penn State at #2-seed Wisconsin (33-5-0)
Saturday, March 16 at 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT
Minnesota Duluth / Connecticut at #1-seed Ohio State (32-4-0)
Saturday, March 16 at 4 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. CT
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