Badgers Upset Bulldogs 3-2 To Split Series At Duluth
December 06, 2003 | Women's Hockey
A long bus ride was made a little easier for the fifth-ranked Wisconsin women's hockey team after clinching a 3-2 victory against fourth-ranked Minnesota-Duluth in the final minutes of play Saturday evening at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center.
After tying up the score two times throughout the contest, the Badgers used a late rally to claim the lead after a goal by team captain Carla MacLeod at 17:59 with an assist from assistant captain Meghan Hunter. Wisconsin fought off over 40 seconds of a Minnesota-Duluth assault after the Bulldogs pulled their goalie looking for the tie, but the Badgers held on for their 12th win of the season.
UW frosh Sara Bauer led the Badgers in scoring with a goal and assist, while Hunter's assist on the game-winning tally earned her sole possession of Wisconsin's all-time scoring title with 160 career points (78-82=160).
Frosh goaltender Christine Dufour collected 25 saves in the win to improve to 8-2-0 in the Badger net this season, while Minnesota-Duluth frosh goaltender Riitta Schaublin posted 33 saves in the loss.
Game two of the series between the Badgers and Bulldogs opened in similar fashion to the weekend's first battle. Minnesota-Duluth claimed the lead with a Jessica Koizumi goal off the power play at 9:07 for a 1-0 score and Wisconsin again outshot UMD 11-7. However, all similarities would end there in the first period.
Wisconsin shrugged off the UMD lamplighter and any hopes of a large early lead for the three-time defending NCAA champions. The Badgers moved the crowd to the edge of its seats with three power-play opportunities and numerous bullets against Schaublin from the UW sharpshooters, but failed to find the back of the UMD net.
The second period followed suit with a Wisconsin power play at 5:03 that Minnesota-Duluth killed off. Schaublin couldn't stop every shot though and it finally paid off for the Badgers.
A delay-of-game penalty against the Bulldog bench provided Wisconsin with a second power play for the stanza at 10:30. Just 40 seconds later, Badger frosh Sara Bauer would tip in the equalizer with assists from classmate Meaghan Mikkelson and junior Molly Engstrom for the 1-1 game. After a roughing penalty against Wisconsin at 17:04, Minnesota-Duluth was awarded its own 5-on-4 advantage but the UW's special teams killed it to preserve the tie heading into the contest's final period.
A plethora of penalties against both teams would set up Minnesota-Duluth's second goal of the game by Krista McArthur at 5:32 with a 4-on-3 advantage. Wisconsin gained the upper hand minutes later when a UMD interference call gave the Badgers their own 4-on-3 opportunity but to no avail.
The visiting team wasn't out of the game yet though. With just over four minutes ticking down on the clock, Wisconsin would tie up the score again 2-2 after a goal by Bloomington, Minn., native Sharon Cole with assists from Bauer and fellow frosh Lindsay Macy at 15:45.
Now 2-2, a tense air filled the DECC as both teams fought for control of the puck, but it would prove to be Wisconsin's night as MacLeod beat Schaublin with the pass from Hunter and Dufour would not fall to the Bulldogs' attack in the closing seconds.
Now with the first half of the 2003'04 season behind the Cardinal and White, Wisconsin (12-4-0, 8-4-0 WCHA) begins a one-month break from the ice until Jan. 10-11 for a series against Northeastern in Long Beach, Calif. The series, hosted by the Huskies, will mark the Badgers first ever trip to California for competition.
Wisconsin returns to league play Saturday, Jan. 17 and Sunday, Jan. 18 when Minnesota-Duluth travels south to Madison for a rematch of this weekend's exciting series. Both games are slated to start at 2:05 p.m. at the Kohl Center and Saturday's contest will be broadcast live on NewsTalk 1310 WIBA by WIBA sports director Brian Posick and former Badger Julia Ortenzio.
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