Wisconsin Remains Unbeaten vs. Minnesota State With 4-1 Win
October 21, 2005 | Women's Hockey
The No. 2 Wisconsin women's hockey team defeated Minnesota State in Western Collegiate Hockey Association action Friday night at the All Seasons Arena in Mankato, Minn. The Badgers remain unbeaten against the Mavericks with a 24-0-1 all-time record. This season's record improved to 4-1-0 with the win and 2-1-0 in the WCHA. The Mavericks fell to 3-2-0 (2-1-0 WCHA).
In the first period, junior Sara Bauer (St. Catharines, Ontario) caught a pass from freshman defender Alycia Matthews (Castlegar, British Columbia) near the top of the right circle. Bauer slipped it to senior captain Sharon Cole (Bloomington, Minn.) in front of the crease. Cole shot, was denied but caught the deflection on the tip of her stick as she was falling forward. Popping the puck over MSU goalie Brit Kehler 's left shoulder, Cole started the night's scoring at 8:28.
The contest was a physical as usual with eight penalties between the two teams in the first period including a five-minute major and a game misconduct called against MSU sophomore Noelle Needham who was escorted out of the game after two rough checks along the boards. Still, both teams were scoreless on the power play. MSU had four opportunities while Wisconsin failed to connect on any of its seven chances.
The second period started with a Maverick goal at 2:21. The teams were only equalized for four minutes as Bauer notched her fourth goal of the season at 6:48. Still ahead by one, Wisconsin retired to the locker room for the final intermission.
Early in the third period freshman forward Erika Lawler (Fitchburg, Mass.) fired from the slot hitting the left corner of the net, but it was ruled a no-goal as some rough action around the net had popped the cage loose. Later, newcomer Kayla Hagen (Hibbing, Minn) had a solid chance on a breakaway, but was rejected by Kehler's kick save.
Finally, two more freshmen combined for the score at 13:52 as UW 's Angie Keseley (St. Louis Park, Minn.) broke away near center ice and charged into Maverick territory. Followed closely by linemate Tia Hanson (Medicine Hat, Alberta) and two MSU defenders, Keseley delivered a crisp pass to Hanson who finished the job giving the Badgers their insurance goal.
Minnesota State called for a timeout with 1:49 left in the game. Coming on strong the Mavs pushed it out of their defensive zone and pulled Kehler from the cage. With the extra skater MSU tested the Badger defense who kept the puck clear of the UW net. Bauer nabbed the puck on a turnover and connected with Cole who pocketed the empty-netter with less than a minute to play.
The 4-1 win extended the Badgers' unbeaten streak vs. Minnesota State to 24-0-1 and put them one game away from the 100-conference win mark.
Wisconsin will try for a conference sweep when the teams face off Saturday at All Seasons Arena. The puck drops at 3:07 p.m.
