MANKATO, Minn. —Freshman forward Brette Pettet scored the game-winning goal late in the first period to power the No. 1 Wisconsin women's hockey team past Minnesota State, 3-1, Saturday afternoon at the Verizon Wireless Center. 

Senior forward Claudia Kepler put Wisconsin (8-0-0, 2-0-0-0 WCHA) on the board first against Minnesota State (1-4-1 0-2-0-0 WCHA), hammering home a deflected shot from sophomore Presley Norby and tallying her team-high fifth goal of the season. 

Pettet notched the gamewinner a minute later after burying a rebound that ricocheted off junior Sam Cogan's skate. 

Mavericks forward Rebekah Kolstad cut the Badgers lead in half with four minutes left in the first period on a MSU power play.

After a scoreless second, sophomore Maddie Rowe sealed the deal for Wisconsin with an insurance goal late in the third period, her first of the year. 

Three Notes of the Game:
- Wisconsin improved to 80-2-3 all-time against Minnesota State, good for a .959 winning percentage.
- The Badgers are off to an 8-0-0 start for the fourth time in school history.
- Kirsten Campbell earned her eighth win of the year for UW, stopping 15 of the 16 shots she encountered.

Straight from the Rink: 
Head coach Mark Johnson 
On the win: 
"It's interesting because during the first period there were a bunch of penalties called on us, so we had to kill their power plays off. In the first two periods there were over 11 penalties called, so it just makes for a different game and there's not much rhythm or flow to the game because if you're not on special teams you're not playing a lot." 

On the difference of today's play: 
"What impressed me the most was it was a little bit different from yesterday in that we were down a goal, and today we're up a goal with 20 minutes to go. I thought our third period might have probably been our best period of the year. We came out and we played with a lot of tempo and a lot of pace and did a really good job. There weren't many penalties called, so you got into a little bit of flow and it was good. It was nice to see us score the third goal." 
 
Freshman forward Brette Pettet 
On the game winner: 
"It was a really nice play by Sam Cogan and the defense. Our game plan was to get it to the net and that's what we did. Sam slid across to me right on my stick so I had an open net." 

On line changes: 
"I think we responded really well. Sometimes it can be tough to get adjusted with a new line, but I think we worked hard and stuck to our game plan which helped out." 
 
Sophomore forward Maddie Rowe
On her first goal of the season in a new position: 
"It feels good to finally put one in the back of the net. I've been working hard all season trying to put one away and it feels good to get the first one under the belt." 

"You just got to be ready whenever coach calls your name. Whatever position you're playing, it doesn't matter. When he calls your name you just got to be ready to go." 

Up Next: 
Wisconsin returns home to take on Bemidji State in a Friday-Saturday series at LaBahn Arena. Both games will start at 7 p.m.