(UW ATHLETICS) ST. PAUL, MINN – The No. 1 Wisconsin women’s hockey team (32-4-2) fell to Ohio State, 2-1, in the WCHA Championship game this Saturday hosted at Lee & Penny Anderson Arena in St. Paul.
Wisconsin and Ohio State were the one and two seeds in the WCHA Tournament, meeting up after wins over Minnesota State and Minnesota, respectively. Both teams owned a lead in the final ten minutes of play, with Ohio State scoring back-to-back goals in the final six minutes to take home the championship trophy.
Scoring was scarce through the majority of the Championship. A tremendous effort from goaltender Ava McNaughton kept the score 0-0 after the first two periods.
Lacey Eden broke through for the Badgers, providing the first lead of the game for either team at 10:02 in the third period. Eden crashed the net and received a pass from Kelly Gorbatenko behind the net to one-time the go-ahead goal.
Ohio State finally got one past McNaughton, who saved the first 36 shots of the game, at the 5:30 mark – tying things up at one apiece. Two minutes later, an OSU shot deflected off the Badgers, taking an unfortunate bounce across the goal line to put the Buckeyes ahead.
UW went on the power play in the final twenty seconds of the game, going 6-on-4 with an empty net, but Ohio State ultimately came out on top, 2-1.
McNaughton made a career high 38 saves in the loss, including going 18-for-18 on save attempts in a tough second period for UW. At one point in the period, she made three saves in seven seconds – including one without her stick. It was the most saves of any Badger goaltender since Cami Kronish made 42 against Ohio State on 2/18/23.
Forward Kirsten Simms and defender Caroline Harvey each earned spots on the All-Tournament team. Simms had two goals and an assist through two games while Harvey had a goal and two assists.
Up Next: The NCAA selection show will take place tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. on ESPNU and ESPN+. Wisconsin hosts two teams on Thursday, March 12, and plays the winner of Thursday’s game on Saturday, March 14.
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