Bemidji State at (1) Ohio State
With several players out on national team duty, Ohio State showed off their depth. Rylee Bartz scored twice while Ema Tóthová and Kennedy Carmichael each added a goal to carry Ohio State to a 4-1 win. Davina Davis scored a late goal for Bemidji State to ruin the shutout on Friday. While the Beavers were held scoreless for most of the first game of the weekend, they scored just 22 seconds into Saturday’s game on a shot from Talya Hendrickson. Kaia Malachino scored the first of her three goals skating through traffic and beating the goalie to tie the game 1-1. OSU took the lead less than three minutes into the second on Malachino’s second of the game. Leah Wicks’ shot through traffic made it 3-1 a few minutes later. Kassidy Carmichael’s pass from behind the net found Maxine Cimoroni in the low slot to make it 4-1. Malachino completed the hat trick early in the third, putting back a rebound to close out a 5-1 win and weekend sweep.
(2) Minnesota at (13) Minnesota Duluth
Bella Fanale’s two first-period goals had Minnesota up 2-0. The sophomore scored off the rush both times – first with a snipe from outside the dots and then fighting through traffic with some nice puck handling. Laini Gnetz cut into the lead for UMD in the second when a rebound popped to her and she buried it on the power play to make it a 2-1 game. In the third, the Gophers kept Duluth at bay until they pulled their goalie for an extra attacker and Renée Lapointe forced overtime with 34.5 seconds left in regulation. The game looked destined for a shootout but Ava Lindsay’s snipe with 36.9 seconds left secured the 3-2 overtime win for Minnesota. On Saturday, the teams spent much of the first feeling each other out and trying not to make a mistake. Then Kendra Distad put a long pass on Maddie McCullough’s stick and she buried it to give the Gophers a 1-0 lead. But the Bulldogs responded just a minute later as Lapointe tied the game 1-1. Another 55 seconds after that, Sienna D’Alessandro buried a rebound to finish a late first period flurry that ended with Minnesota up 2-1 at the break. Sloane Hartmetz put the Gophers up 3-1 on a drop pass from Fanale – once again on a rush – to make it 3-1. Josie St. Martin’s slapshot early in the third cut the lead to 3-2, but Minnesota Duluth could not find an equalizer as Hannah Clark made 29 saves on the day to secure a weekend sweep for the Gophers.
(3) Wisconsin at (9) St. Cloud State
It was a very close game between these two ranked WCHA teams on Friday. SCSU outshot Wisconsin 8-7 in the first, but neither team could find the back of the net. The Badgers put on more pressure in the second, with 18 shots on rookie goalie Alexis Ehrman and broke through with a goal from Finley McCarthy. But SCSU kept things close and tied the game with under five to play as Julianne Labbé found the back of the net. Wisconsin didn’t get phased and Charlotte Pieckenhagen restored the Badger lead just 72 seconds later, which was enough to give UW a 2-1 win. The second game of the series belonged to Badger freshman Nela Lopušanová. She had a hat trick by the time 14:51 had elapsed in the first. Cassie Hall got a goal in there as well (Lopušanová had an assist), so it was 4-0 Wisconsin after one. Payton Holloway put SCSU on the board in the second – the only goal of the frame. Maria Mikaelyan scored in the opening minutes of the third to cut the lead to 4-2, but the Badgers pushed back. Lopušanová scored her fourth goal, McCarthy added a short-hander and then so did Lopušanová to close out a 7-2 win and a five-goal, six-point night.
Boston University (4) Northeastern
In the first game of the weekend, Northeastern got big nights from Éloïse Caron, who had two goals and three assists, as well as Grace Sadura, with two goals and two assists and Emy McDermid, who had a goal and three assists. Behind those performances the Huskies cruised to an 8-1 win. The Huskies scored in bunches, with four goals in the second and three in the third. Tessa Demain was the goal-scorer for BU in the loss. On Saturday, Northeastern took an early 2-0 lead thanks to power play goals from Sadura and Lilly McInerney. But the Terriers pushed back. Goals less than a minute apart from Quinn Taylor and Kylie Hollingsworth tied the game 2-2. Morgan Jackson scored in the final two minutes of the first to give NU a 3-2 lead at the end of the first. Sydney Fogu made 44 saves for Boston University, but their offense could not break through further and Caron scored a late insurance goal in the third to secure a 4-2 win and weekend sweep.
(14) Yale at (5) Quinnipiac
Great puck movement on an early power play got Cami Bell the puck on the back post to put Yale up less than four minutes into the game. Chloe Cleaves forced a turnover, passed the puck to herself off a defender and then buried a wrister to make it a 2-0 game later in the first. The Bulldogs extended the lead early in the third when Emma McGowan put back a rebound to make it 3-0. Makayla Watson’s power play goal in the final minute of the third got Quinnipiac on the board, but Yale took the 3-1 win.
Brown at (5) Quinnipiac
Alex Law had two goals and an assist while Annabelle Kruzich added two goals to lead Quinnipiac to an 8-2 win on Saturday. Law, Johnson, Kruzich and Cormier had the Bobcats up 4-0. Monique Lyons and Ella Muralt scored quickly after Cormier to cut the lead to 4-2, but that’s as close as things would get. Law responded just 12 seconds later and Aynsley D’Ottavio, Keara Parker and Kruzich each scored before the second ended and suddenly the game was out of reach at 8-2.
Brown at (6) Princeton
These two teams were easily matched through the first two periods as neither scored and shots were 16-14 in favor of the Tigers. But Princeton showed why they are a top 10 team as they pulled away in the third. First Ellie Dimatos stopped a breakout and gave a behind the back pass to Hannah Fetterolf, who moved through traffic and picked the upper corner to make it 1-0. Then Makenzie Alexander and Caroline Averill connected with speed through the zone where Averill tapped it in on the back door to make it 2-0. Monique Lyons scored on the power play with under three to go to make it a 2-1 game, but Alexander’s empty-netter secured the 3-1 win for the Tigers.
(14) Yale at (6) Princeton
Yale outshot Princeton 36-24, but Uma Corniea made 35 saves and held the Bulldogs off the board until the final five minutes as Riley Sorokan scored twice – early in the second and early in the third – to give the Tigers a 2-1 win. Mariya Rauf scored for Yale in the loss.
(7) Penn State at RIT
Oceanne Thiffault made 34 saves and the RIT defense had 15 blocks, but Abby Stonehouse’s backhander during four-on-four in the second was enough for Penn State to take a 1-0 win on Friday. Saturday’s game was all PSU, whose offense can’t be held in check for too long. Stonehouse earned her first career hat trick while Mikah Keller, Danica Maynard and Grace Outwater each lit the lamp to carry the Nittany Lions to a 6-0 win and weekend sweep.
RPI at (8) Colgate
Colgate jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first period thanks to goals from Chloe Goofers, Emma Pais and Ava Wood. After a scoreless second, Pais extended the lead to 4-0. Kaylynn Fisher broke up the shutout with a goal midway through the third to make it 4-1. Madeline Palumbo’s last second goal secured the 5-1 win for the Raiders.
Union at (8) Colgate
The Raiders opened scoring early as Taylor Senecal picked out the top corner just three minutes in to make it a 1-0 game. Four minutes later, Pais showed off some great puckhandling to beat everyone and make it 2-0. Klara Kenttala scored for Union later in the first to make it 2-1 after the opening frame. Neither team was able to mount much in the second. In the third, Ava Wood scored a short-handed empty netter to secure a 3-1 win for Colgate.
(10) Clarkson at Harvard
Jessie Pellerin put Clarkson up 1-0 early after Manon Le Scodan won a turnover in the neutral zone and set Pellerin up. The Golden Knights were holding possession and outshooting Harvard, but the Crimson tied things up as Morgan McGathey put back Angelica Megdanis’ wraparound attempt. Early in the second, Clarkson scored a carbon copy of their first goal, with Le Scodan winning the puck on Harvard’s zone exit. This time she fed Janelle Evans to put Clarkson up 2-1. Shelby Laidlaw extended the lead to 3-1 on an odd-skater rush near the end of the second. Kennedy Sisson extended the lead to 4-1 eight minutes into the third. But Harvard pushed back immediately as Ella Lucia scored a minute later on the power play to make it 4-2. Megdanis’ shot from the slot with just under seven to play cut the lead to 4-3, but the Crimson couldn’t complete the comeback as the Golden Knights held possession and held on for the win.
(10) Clarkson at Dartmouth
The Golden Knights scored three special team goals on Saturday en route to a 4-1 win. Jessie Pellerin scored twice in the opening frame to make it 2-0 at the first break. Keira Hurry added a power play goal in the second to extend the lead to 3-0. Addy Cowan put Dartmouth on the board with her first career goal, but Hurry replied with a short-hander to secure the win for Clarkson.
Union at (12) Cornell
Karianne Engelbert tied a program record with five points, having a hand in every Union goal in their 5-4 upset of Cornell on Friday. Delaney Fleming scored three minutes into the game to give Cornell a 1-0 lead. Piper Grober made it 2-0 five minutes later. The second period was about special teams as five penalties were called and three power plays scored. Engelbert scored her first goal seven minutes in on the advantage. Rose Dwyer responded to make it a 3-1 game. Megan Duplantie put back an Engelbert shot later in the frame, again on the advantage, to make it a 3-2 game. Union carried the momentum into the third as Engelbert scored again to tie the game five minutes into the third. Lindzi Avar gave Cornell a 4-3 lead, but Engelbert completed her hat trick by sticking with an initial shot that popped up and putting it home to make it 4-4 and force overtime. In the extra frame, neither team seemed able to break through. With just four seconds left on the clock, Engelbert’s shot deflected off the Cornell defender and it landed right on Maddie Leaney’s stick at the far faceoff dot, catching Annelies Bergman out of position. Leaney finished on the wide open net to end the game and give Union the 5-4 win.
RPI at (12) Cornell
This was a game in two halves. It was tied 1-1 after the first after Lindzi Avar scored for Cornell and Kami O’Brien responded for RPI. It took until the final minute of the second for Karel Prefontaine to put the Big Red up 2-1. Then they pulled away in the third as Jill McLaughlin scored her first career goal and Carly Dann made it a 4-1 win for Cornell.
Vermont at (15) Boston College
After a scoreless first, Grace Bickett got a breakaway and scored her first goal with the Eagles to put her team up 1-0. BC kept up the pressure and doubled up Vermont on shots, but could not get past goalie Tara Bach. By keeping it close, the Catamounts had the opportunity to tie the game up on a goal midway through the third by Morgann Skoda. But BC responded with Ava Thomas’ seventh goal of the season and that would be enough for the Eagles to take a 2-1 win. In the second game, Boston College took advantage of the power play. Sarah Powers put them up 1-0 on the power play midway through the first and doubled up the lead less than four minutes into the second on an extra attacker goal from Madelyn Murphy. Bickett made it 3-0 a few minutes later. Rose-Marie Brochu scored a power play goal of her own for Vermont to break up the shutout, but BC took the 3-1 win and weekend sweep.