MADISON, Wis. – The No.1 Wisconsin women's hockey team earned its third consecutive series sweep of the season with Sunday's 4-0 shutout against No.4 Minnesota Duluth.

Captain Caroline Harvey scored a goal and added two assists on the way to the Badger's sweep over No. 4 UMD - the first ranked team UW has played this season. Ava McNaughton shutout the Bulldogs with a 22 save performance.

In another physical matchup, the Badgers scored three of their four goals on the power play. There were 18 total penalties in the game, with UMD responsible for 11 of them. The Badgers went 3-for-10 on the power play, spending 33 minutes of game time with an advantage.

The Badgers went on their first power play early on in the first. After receiving a pass from Lacey Eden, captain Caroline Harvey raced the puck across both team's blue lines to put the puck over the opposing goaltender's shoulder to open the scoring tab for Wisconsin. 

To open the second period, Ava McNaughton saved six goals and the Badgers had outshot the Bulldogs 29-6. With 6:07 remaining in the second, Laney Potter found the puck from Adéla Šapovalivová and Kirsten Simms, and put the Badgers up 2-0.

Šapovalivová stayed hot and found the back of the net herself with 1:15 remaining in the period. Šapovalivová tipped in a pass off a Harvey shot.

Wisconsin opened up the third period on a 5-on-3 penalty kill after a couple of Badger penalties to end the second. Duluth was unsuccessful in getting anything past McNaughton however.

Later on, the Bulldogs got a checking penalty on Šapovalivová and the tables turned, with the Badgers going 5-on-3. Alternate captain Lacey Eden one-timed in a pass from Kirsten Simms, collecting her third goal of the year and putting the final score at 4-0. 

Notes of the Game

• Last time the Badgers shutout a top ranked opponent was Jan. 2, when they blanked No.2 Ohio State. Wisconsin is unbeaten in their last nine games against top-five opponents.

• Wisconsin now has its fourth shutout of the season, leading the country in shutouts. Ava McNaughton individually leads the nation with three shutouts as well. 

• The Badgers outshot the Bulldogs 54-22, and secured their ninth victory in a row against UMD.

• Across both games in the series, there were 28 penalties, 17 for UMD. 

 

Head Coach Mark Johnson
On goaltender Ava McNaughton's performance today
"The game wasn't perfect on our side for sure, there's a lot of teaching points we can pull out. The breakdowns that we did have, she had a couple of really nice saves. Which is good, she was one of those players that looked more comfortable today than she did yesterday."

Junior goaltender Ava McNaughton
On earning a shutout today
"I think it's definitely good to end on a high note, especially after yesterday was kind of a chippy, sloppy game, kind of back and forth. Sometimes you want some of the goals back, and on a different day you make some of those saves. To be able to turn it around today and be more comfortable on the net and feel a little more at home was definitely helpful. To be able to shut them out on the last day is definitely a confidence booster going into the next weekend."

Captain Caroline Harvey
On taking advantage of the puck
"It was a great start just for our team in general. I know we had a ton of special teams out there, and I think that was huge, the momentum of it as a group. We were able to get going from pretty early on, and I think that helped a lot with our momentum and carried through the game. We had a bunch of shots, a bunch of chances, and the goalie still played unbelievable. So I think that was the difference for our team in general, was our special teams did well."

Up Next: The Badgers travel to Schenectady, N.Y. for the 2025 Ice Breaker Tournament. Wisconsin will play Vermont on Friday and either Union or Saint Anselm on Saturday.