Buckeyes Host WCHA First Round vs Minnesota State
2/26/2020 1:22:44 PM | Women's Ice Hockey
ADDITIONAL INFO
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 5 Ohio State women’s ice hockey team is set to host the Minnesota State Mavericks in the first round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Playoffs. The best-of-three series will begin on Friday, Feb. 28 at 6:07 p.m. and continue on Saturday, Feb. 29 at 3:07 p.m. If need be, game three will be held at 3:07 p.m. on Sunday, March 1.
The playoff games will be ticketed. Fans can purchase single game tickets and two game passes through ticketmaster here. All tickets will be picked up from will call at the southeast ticketing office in St. John Arena. Tickets can also be purchased the day of the event at the southeast ticketing office. The first 100 Ohio State students will be granted free admission with a BuckID. After that, student tickets are $5. All ticket information can be found here.
Last time out
The Buckeyes finished regular season conference play on home ice and celebrated the team’s four seniors in a special senior day ceremony before Saturday’s game. The Scarlet and Gray came away with a sweep of the St. Cloud State Huskies, winning 3-0 on Friday and 6-3 on Saturday. It was the team’s sixth sweep of the season and fourth conference sweep.
In game one, Andrea Braendli posted 22 saves in net and recorded her second shutout of the season and eighth of her career. Liz Schepers opened scoring just 30 seconds into the contest while Jincy Dunne and Brooke Bink added tallies. In the series finale, three Buckeyes scored three power play goals including scores from Jenn Gardiner, Gabby Rosenthal and senior defenseman Elise Riemenschneider. The goal was Riemenschneider’s first career goal and ninth career point. Maltais dished out three assists in the contest, including the assist to Riemenschneider to make Maltais the new single season point leader in Buckeye history.
Buckeye Bits
- Ohio State reached its 20th win of the season on Saturday with a 6-3 victory over St. Cloud State. It is the fourth time in history the program has achieved a 20-win season and the third year in a row.
- Andrea Braendli earned her second shutout of the season and eighth of her career in Friday’s 3-0 win.
- Liz Schepers scored the fastest opening goal of the season just 30 seconds after puck drop on Friday.
- Emma Maltais posted a team-high two points on Friday from two assists and completed the weekend with another three assists on Saturday for a weekend-high five points.
- With Maltais’ final assist of the weekend, she set a new program record for single season points at 55.
- Senior defender Elise Riemenschneider scored her first career goal on a power play in Saturday’s senior day game.
- Three power play goals were scored in Saturday’s 6-3 win including one from Riemenschneider, Jenn Gardiner and Gabby Rosenthal. Rosenthal now has a team-high five power play goals.
- Three Buckeyes earned conference player of the week honors including Jincy Dunne (Defenseman of the Week), Andrea Braendli (Goaltender of the Week) and Brooke Bink (Rookie of the Week). It is Braendli’s second straight conference nod.
Buckeyes in the WCHA Playoffs
Seven teams make up the WCHA and all seven get a chance to play for the title. The Wisconsin Badgers won the regular season and are granted a first round bye and an automatic trip to the Final Faceoff in Minneapolis, Minn. The Minnesota Golden Gophers are No. 2 in the conference and are therefore playing the No. 7-ranked Huskies of St. Cloud State. The Buckeyes finished third in the conference with 46 total points and will play the No. 6-ranked Minnesota State Mavericks. No. 4 Minnesota Duluth finished just behind Ohio State with 41 points and will battle it out with No. 5 Bemidji State. All first round games are a best-of-three series that are hosted by the higher seed. The final game if need be will be played on Sunday across the league.
The Buckeyes have a WCHA tournament record of 21-33 while head coach Nadine Muzerall has a record of 5-4 in the past four seasons. Ohio State has faced off with Minnesota State in the first round of the playoffs for the past two seasons, coming out with a 4-0 record. Last season the Buckeyes defeated the Mavericks 3-2 in overtime of the first game while the Scarlet and Gray punched their ticket to the Final Faceoff with a 3-0 win in game two.
Series history against Minnesota State
Ohio State is 2-0-2 against the Mavericks this season with an undefeated record on home ice. The Buckeyes traveled to Mankato in October and tied both games but when Minnesota State visited Columbus, the Buckeyes outscored the Mavs 14-4. Overall, nine Buckeyes posted goals while 14 tallied assists.
On the weekend, Andrea Braendli posted her first shutout of the season in Friday’s 6-0 win while Emma Maltais scored a goal and tallied three assists for a game-high four points. The Buckeyes closed the weekend with an 8-4 win while freshman Jenn Gardiner scored two goals and Maltais scored her first short-handed goal of the season.
More on the Mavericks
Minnesota State is entering the weekend with a regular season record of 11-18-6 (4-16-4 WCHA). Last weekend the Mavericks dropped both games against Minnesota while only posting one goal against the Gophers.
Sophomore defenseman Anna Wilgren is leading the Mavericks with 23 points from five goals and a team-high 18 assists while forward Claire Butorac and defenseman Tristen Traux each have eight goals on the season to pace the offense. Freshman Kelsey King and senior Emily Antony have also surpassed the 20 point mark this season as King has 22 points from six goals and 16 assists while Antony has 21 points from six goals and 15 assists.
In net, sophomore Abigail Levy has played in 22 games while posting a 2.97 goals against average. She has a season record of 5-12-3. Freshman Call Frank has appeared in 17 games while starting 15 and has a 2.76 goals against average and a .909 save percentage. Her season record is 6-6-3. In the Maverick’s 3-1 upset over Wisconsin, Frank held a shutout until late in the third period, but made 35 saves in the win.
Up Next
- The winners of the best-of-three WCHA First Round Playoffs will advance to the WCHA Final Faceoff hosted by Minnesota.
- Both the semifinal and championship games are hosted in Ridder Arena on Saturday, March 7 and Sunday, March 8.
