View the March 8th Penalty Box Post newsletter (includes graphics & photos)
Gophers fall to Ohio State in WCHA semifinals; Buckeyes defeat Badgers in conference championship
A 29-save performance by Hannah Clark was not enough for the Gopher Women's Hockey team in the second semifinal of the WCHA Final Faceoff at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena in St. Paul. Ohio State held Minnesota to 22 shots on goal, all of which were stopped by Buckeyes netminder Hailey MacLeod. Meanwhile, Sloane Matthews scored twice for OSU on power plays, Jocelyn Amos tallied a goal & 2 assists, and Emma Peschel dished out 3 helpers to defeat the Gophers, 4-0.
First semifinal: Wisconsin 7, Minnesota State 2 – Kirsten Simms & Kelly Gorbatenko each tallied two goals and an assist, Caroline Harvey added a goal and two helpers, and Badgers netminder Ava McNaughton made 24 saves. Sophie Stramel & Lauren Goldsworthy lit the lamp for the Mavericks and Hailey Hansen stopped 43 shots.
Championship: Ohio State 2, Wisconsin 1 – After nearly 2½ scoreless periods to open the contest, Lacey Eden lit the lamp 9:58 into the third stanza to put the Badgers in the lead. But Hilda Svensson knotted the score for the Buckeyes with 5:30 remaining in regulation and Jordan Baxter lit the lamp for OSU 2:03 later. That was all that Buckeyes netminder Hailey MacLeod required, finishing with 28 saves for the win. Wisconsin's Ava McNaughton made 38 saves.
All-Tournament Team –
F - Hilda Svensson, Ohio State
F - Sloane Matthews, Ohio State
F - Kirsten Simms, Wisconsin
D - Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin
D - Emma Peschel, Ohio State
G - Hailey MacLeod, Ohio State
Most Outstanding Player – F - Jordan Baxter, Ohio State
NCAA Tournament – Single-elimination
Quarterfinal – #4-seeded Minnesota Golden Gophers (26-11-1)
vs. #5-seeded Northeastern University Huskies (28-8-1)
Saturday, March 14 at 2:00 p.m. CT
Ridder Arena
The Golden Gophers are headed to their fifth-straight Big Dance and earned the #4 seed. As a result, they will host a Regional Final (tournament quarterfinal) contest at Ridder Arena against the #5-seeded Northeastern University Huskies on Saturday, March 14 at 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.
Other NCAA Tournament Matchups – First Round (Regional Semifinals)
Yale (25-9-0) vs. Minnesota Duluth (20-14-3) – at Ohio State
Thursday, March 12 at 6 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. CT
Connecticut (27-8-2) vs. Princeton (23-10-0) – at Penn State
Thursday, March 12 at 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT
Quinnipiac (28-8-3) vs. Franklin Pierce (23-11-2) – at Wisconsin
Thursday, March 12 at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT
Quarterfinals (Regional Finals)
Connecticut / Princeton at #3-seed Penn State (32-5-0)
Saturday, March 14 at 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT
Quinnipiac / Franklin Pierce at #2-seed Wisconsin (32-4-2)
Saturday, March 14 at 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT
Yale / Minnesota Duluth at #1-seed Ohio State (34-4-0)
Saturday, March 14 at 6 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. CT
The full bracket is available on NCAA.com.
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