University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
7-0-0, 5-0-0WCHA
Minnesota Duluth
4-5-0, 2-3-0WCHA
Minnesota Rallies Past UMD, 5-2
10/23/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
Oct. 23, 2015
By Hannah Barnes, Athletic Communications Student Intern
MINNEAPOLIS - The No. 1 Minnesota women's hockey team (7-0-0, 5-0-0 WCHA) scored five unanswered goals after trailing 2-0 to secure a 5-2 win over Minnesota Duluth (4-5-0, 2-3-0 WCHA) at Ridder Arena Friday night.
Kelly Pannek (2g-1a) and Milica McMillen (3a) led Minnesota in the victory, each recording three points. McMillen's second assist of the game marked her 100th career point as a Gopher. Amanda Leveille made 17 saves as the Gophers outshot the Bulldogs, 48-19.
Sarah Potomak, Dani Cameranesi, Lee Stecklein, Cara Piazza, Kate Schipper and Megan Wolfe also made their way onto the score sheet for Minnesota.
UMD was led by Ashleigh Brykaliuk (1g-1a) and Lara Stalder (1g), along with receiving 43 saves from freshman goaltender Maddie Rooney.
"Tonight was a real hard fought game," head coach Brad Frost said. "I really liked the resiliency of our team after getting down 2-0 there. To score five unanswered obviously is fantastic, along with getting those three points. Duluth is very well coached, they put a lot of pressure on the puck, and they do a lot of really, really good stuff."
The Gophers were down by one after the first period after the Bulldogs struck on the power play 6:55 into the game. Brykaliuk scored her third goal of the season off a feed from Sidney Morin and Jessica Healey.
In the second period, UMD scored its second power-play goal of the game, taking a 2-0 lead off Stalder's team-leading sixth goal of the season from Brykaliuk.
After a 2-0 deficit, the Gophers score five unanswered goals, with the first two coming off the stick of Pannek in the second period to send the teams into the second intermission tied 2-2. Pannek scored an even-strength goal at 13:50 of the middle frame before solving Rooney on the power play at 17:07 of the second.
The Gophers erupted for three goals in third period, including a power-play goal tipped past Rooney by Cameranesi to give Minnesota its first lead of the game at 3-2 just 51 seconds into the third period.
"Our power play was clicking tonight," Frost said. "We need our PK to be a little better, but I was happy with our discipline after we gave up those first two goals to not get down a man again."
Minnesota was two-for-three on the power play, but the Bulldogs were two-for-two as both of the visitors' tallies came with the man advantage.
Five minutes into the third period, Potomak gave the Gophers a 4-2 lead on a snipe out front, netting her fourth goal of her career before Piazza finished off the Gophers' scoring when she buried an empty-net goal with 1:07 remaining in the game.
The Gophers and Bulldogs will continue the series at 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon at Ridder Arena.
###
