Goin' Nuts: Badgers Battle Buckeyes This Weekend
October 27, 2003 | Women's Hockey
The Wisconsin women's hockey team, now 4-2-0 overall and 0-2-0 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, plays host to Ohio State this weekend at the Kohl Center. The Badgers will take to their home ice against the Buckeyes this Saturday, Nov. 1, and Sunday, Nov. 2 at 2:05 p.m.
Please note: This story information is also available in the UW women's hockey release for Oct. 27 available by clicking "news releases and archives" in the right column of this web page.
WOMEN'S HOCKEY AIRED LIVE ON WIBA 1310 AM
Saturday's home game versus Ohio State at the Kohl Center at 2:05 p.m. will be broadcast on NewsTalk 1310 WIBA, one of three games aired this season.
WIBA sports director Brian Posick and former women's hockey player Julia Ortenzio will call the games live. The 2003'04 schedule of remaining live women's hockey broadcasts is as follows:
Saturday, Nov. 1 Ohio State at Wisconsin, 2:05 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 17 Minnesota-Duluth at Wisconsin, 2:05 p.m.
THIS WEEKEND'S SERIES: SCOUTING THE BUCKEYES
Predicted to finish fourth overall in the WCHA preseason coaches ' poll, Ohio State has opened the 2003'04 season with the league 's toughest schedule so far. The Buckeyes dropped two back-to-back series against Minnesota and Minnesota-Duluth in the past two weekends.
Beyond the 0-4-0 record, OSO lost to UMD by just one goal in each game and the Buckeyes' special teams have done well on the penalty-killing front with a .824 success rate (14/17).
Sophomore forward Jana Harrigan leads the Buckeyes in scoring with three goals (3-0=3), followed closely by junior Jennifer Desson with two goals.
Melissa Glaser, a senior goaltender from Rockford, Ill., has racked up 99 saves in four games for a .839 save percentage despite a 4.78 GAA.
LUCKY BUCKEYES'
According to folklore, Ohio State's mascot namesake, the Ohio Buckeye nut, is considered a good luck charm. Wisconsin and Ohio State both battle with their WCHA rivals in the state of Minnesota every season, but OSU's lucky nut against the Badgers' seems faulty. Wisconsin owns a 12-1-5 all-time record against Ohio State with a lone loss record on March 4, 2000.
The Badgers played the Buckeyes five times last season, including once in the 2003 WCHA Final Five. With a 4-0-1 record against OSU in 2002'03, Wisconsin posted a 3-3 tie followed by four straight victories, including a 4-1 win against the Buckeyes to finish third at the Final Five tournament.
NO. 6 BADGERS FALL TO NO. 1 GOLDEN GOPHERS AT HOME
Sixth-ranked Wisconsin was swept by top-ranked Minnesota in a two-game series at the Kohl Center this past weekend.
The Badgers fell 3-0 Saturday and 3-1 on Sunday. UW outshot the Golden Gophers 53-48 in the series, but was outplayed on special teams finishing 0-6 in power-play situations to Minnesota's 4-7 mark.
Frosh Sara Bauer scored the Badgers' lone goal of the series late in the third period of the second game and junior Amy Vermeulen earned the assist. It was Bauer's first career goal wearing the cardinal and white and improves her season total to seven points (1-6=7) to continue leading the Badgers overall.
Sophomore goaltender Meghan Horras collected 27 saves in net Saturday, while frosh goaltender Christine Dufour recorded 18 Sunday. Horras earned her third career start and Dufour earned her second for 2-1-0 and 1-1-0 career records, respectively.
WISCONSIN REMAINS IN TOP-10 RANKINGS NATIONALLY
Wisconsin dropped one spot to seventh place nationally in the U.S. College Hockey Online Division I poll (Oct. 20), while holding on to a sixth-place ranking in the USA Today/American Hockey Magazine poll for Oct. 21.
The Badgers received a No. 3 nod from the WCHA coaches in a preseason poll released Oct. 2. Minnesota claimed the top spot, while Minnesota-Duluth finished second ahead of Wisconsin.
NATIONAL TEAM BADGERS
Five members of the 2003'04 Wisconsin women's hockey roster played for the U.S. and Canadian Under-22 National Teams this past July in a three-game exhibition series that the Americans won 2-0-1.
Junior Molly Engstrom skated for Team U.S.A., while juniors Jackie Friesen and Carla MacLeod joined frosh Meaghan Mikkelson and Bobbi-Jo Slusar on Team Canada.
UW's team captain this season, MacLeod also captained her U-22 teammates and was recently named to Canada's Four Nations Cup team, the first step in being selected to her country's national senior women's team.
Senior Meghan Hunter (Canada U-22) and junior Nicole Uliasz (U.S. Senior and U-22) also earned national team experience in the 2001'02 season.
