University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers to Face Ohio State in WCHA Semifinal
2/26/2018 12:00:00 AM | Women's Hockey
| 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff | |
| Semifinal One | Wisconsin vs. Bemidji State | Saturday, March 3 | 2:07 p.m. |
| Semifianl Two | Ohio State vs. Minnesota | Saturday, March 3 | 5:07 p.m. |
| Championship | Semifinal Winners | Sunday, March 4 | 2:07 p.m. |
| Location | Ridder Arena (3,400) | Minneapolis, Minn. |
| Tickets | MyGopherSports.com |
| Travel | Local Weather | Parking | Preferred Hotels |
| Semifinal One | BTN Plus Video (Free) | |
| Semifinal Two | Game Day Live | BTN Plus Video (Free) | Free Audio | |
| Championship | Game Day Live | FOX Sports North | FOX Sports Go | Free Audio | Live Stats |
| Official Sites | Minnesota | Ohio State | Bemidji State | Wisconsin | WCHA Final Faceoff |
| Social Media | @GopherWHockey | Facebook | Instagram | #WCHAFFO18 |
Feb. 26, 2018
MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 7 Golden Gopher women's hockey team is set to take on No. 5 Ohio State in the WCHA semifinals as the WCHA Final Faceoff returns to Ridder Arena this weekend. The Gophers and Buckeyes meet in Saturday's second semifinal at 5:07 p.m. CT after Wisconsin and Bemidji State face off in semifinal one at 2:07 p.m. CT.
About the 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff
The 2018 WCHA Final Face-Off is set for this Saturday and Sunday at Ridder Arena. This year marks the 11th time the league's postseason tournament has been held at Ridder Arena. Wisconsin, Ohio State, Minnesota, and Bemidji State will battle for the WCHA postseason crown and the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.
Two semifinal games are scheduled for 2:07 p.m. CT and 5:07 p.m. CT on Saturday. No. 1 seed Wisconsin (29-3-2) takes on No. 5 seed Bemidji State (16-18-3) in the first semifinal while No. 3 seed Minnesota (22-10-3) will face No. 2 seed Ohio State (23-9-4) in the second semifinal. The two semifinal winners will meet at 2:07 p.m. CT Sunday for the WCHA crown.
All-tournament packages and single-session tickets are available for purchase directly through the Gopher Ticket Office; in-person at 3M Arena at Mariucci (during regular office hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT, Monday-Friday), via phone at 612-624-8080 (Option 2) or online at MyGopherSports.com.
WCHA Final Faceoff Coverage
Saturday's semifinal games will be streamed for free online at WCHA.com and GopherSports.com. Sunday's championship game will air live on FOX Sports North as well as online via FOX Sports GO. Both Gopher games will feature free audio on GopherSports.com, and live stats will be available for all three games through GopherSports.com and WCHA.com.
How They Got Here
Two of the three WCHA First Round best-of-three series were decided in two games. Ohio State swept Minnesota State with 6-0 and 5-2 wins while Minnesota swept St. Cloud State with 5-1 and 4-1 victories. Bemidji State needed three games to knock out Minnesota Duluth as BSU took game one 2-1 but fell 4-1 in game two before winning game three 3-0. WCHA regular-season champion Wisconsin advanced straight to the WCHA Final Faceoff.
About the WCHA Final Face-Off Field
Minnesota is making its 19th-consecutive appearance in the WCHA semifinal round while WCHA regular-season champion Wisconsin is playing in its eighth-straight WCHA Final Face-Off and looks for its fourth-straight postseason crown. Bemidji State returns to the Final Faceoff for the first time since 2015 while Ohio State is making its first appearance since 2013. The Badgers have a WCHA-record seven league playoff titles and Minnesota has won six; both OSU and BSU are looking for their first Final Faceoff title.
About the Series: Minnesota vs. Ohio State
Minnesota enters this weekend's series with an all-time record of 70-11-5 against Ohio State. Minnesota is 0-3-1 against the Buckeyes this season, falling 3-2 and tying 5-5 (OT) in October at Ridder Arena before suffering 3-2 and 5-1 losses in Columbus, Ohio, in January.
Last Time Out: Gophers Knock Out Huskies
Minnesota (22-10-3) secured its WCHA Final Faceoff berth by defeating St. Cloud State 5-1 and 4-1 in the WCHA First Round last weekend. The Gophers were led by Sophie Skarzynski (2g-1a), Nicole Schammel (2g-1a), Sydney Baldwin (3a), and Lindsay Agnew (3a) against the Huskies, and Sidney Peters made 40 saves on 42 shots faced.
Gophers at the WCHA Final Faceoff
Minnesota has never not advanced to the league's postseason tournament, and the Gophers own six league playoff titles. The Gophers last won the WCHA Final Faceoff in 2014, having won three-straight titles from 2012-2014; the Maroon & Gold also won WCHA postseason titles in 2002, 2004, and 2005. Minnesota has a 46-14-0 all-time mark in WCHA postseason games, including last weekend's WCHA First Round sweep over St. Cloud State.
Twenty Years of Gopher Women's Hockey
Minnesota enter the 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff with an all-time program record of 619-130-52. The 2017-18 season marks the 21st season in Gopher women's hockey history, and Minnesota secured the program's 599th and 600th all-time wins on the road at Bemidji State earlier this season.
Senior Salute
From 2014-15 to 2017-18, the four Gopher seniors, Sydney Baldwin, Cara Piazza, Sidney Peters, and Caitlin Reilly, have led Minnesota to a 117-25-13 overall record. In WCHA games, the seniors are 78-17-13. The class has made three NCAA Frozen Four appearances and won back-to-back NCAA titles in 2015 and 2016. The Gophers were WCHA regular-season champions in 2015 and WCHA Final Face-off runners-up in 2016 as well.
Eight Gophers Medal at Olympic Games
Eight players with Gopher ties won medals at the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. Senior Kelly Pannek and alumnae Hannah Brandt ('16), Dani Cameranesi ('17), Amanda Kessel ('16), Gigi Marvin ('09), and Lee Stecklein ('17) won gold with 2018 U.S. Women's Olympic Team, and alumnae Noora Räty ('13) and Mira Jalosuo ('13) won bronze with Team Finland.
Road Warriors
Minnesota opened the season with a perfect 10-0-0 road record over the first half of the regular season, earning sweeps at Bemidji State, Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State, Mercyhurst, and Lindenwood. The Gophers are currently 11-4-1 in road games.
Career-High Scoring
Sydney Baldwin (12g-20a), Nicole Schammel (16g-14a), Sophie Skarzynski (8g-19a), Caitlin Reilly (9g-17a), Alex Woken (10g-12a), Patti Marshall (2g-15a), Lindsay Agnew (5g-8a), and Kippin Keller (2g-8a) have already reached career-highs for scoring this season.
Notable Notes
- Minnesota is 14-0-1 when scoring at least four goals and 19-2-0 when allowing zero, one, or two goals this season.
- Sydney Baldwin (12g-20a) leads WCHA defensemen and ranks fourth in the NCAA with 0.91 points per game. Her 24 career goals are tied for seventh among all-time Minnesota defensemen.
- Grace Zumwinkle (15g-20a) ranks third in the WCHA and 10th in the NCAA among rookies with 1.00 points per game.
- Caitlin Reilly leads Minnesota with eight multi-point games, and Nicole Schammel has a team-best three multi-goal games this season.
- Cara Piazza is tied for the WCHA lead with five game-winning goals this season. More than half of Piazza's goals on the season are game-winners as she has 22 points (9g-13a) in 35 games.
Offensive Defensemen
Sydney Baldwin (12g-20a), Olivia Knowles (7g-11a), and Patti Marshall (2g-15a) are among the WCHA's top-scoring defensemen. Baldwin leads the WCHA and ranks fourth in the nation with 0.91 points per game while Knowles (0.51 points per game) and Marshall (0.49 points per game) rank eighth and 10th, respectively, among WCHA blue-liners.
Immediate Impact
All five of Minnesota's freshmen are seeing significant ice time with all four skaters picking up their first collegiate goals and goaltender Alex Gulstene playing in 13 games (7-2-2). Grace Zumwinkle (15g-20a) leads the team in scoring while Taylor Wente (10g-12a), Olivia Knowles (7g-11a), and Emily Brown (4g-7a) have all registered points on the year.
Peters Named Hockey Humanitarian Award Finalist
Senior goaltender Sidney Peters is one of five finalists for the 2018 Hockey Humanitarian Award. The award is presented annually to college hockey's finest citizen - a student-athlete who makes significant contributions not only to his or her team but also to the community-at-large through leadership in volunteerism.
Gophers Special Teams
The Gophers are second in the WCHA and rank 11th in the NCAA on the power play, converting on 20.6 percent of attempts at 21-for-102. The Gophers slipped to fourth in the league and 15th in the NCAA on the penalty kill at 85.9 percent (79-for-92).
Scoring Milestone
Sydney Baldwin recorded her 50th career point with an assist against Merrimack (Sept. 29). She is second on the team with 29 points (12g-20a) on the season, and her career total stands at 81 career points with 24 goals and 57 assists. Baldwin is tied for seventh in career goals and tied for 10th in career points among all-time Gopher blue-liners.
Home, Sweet Home
Including an 11-6-2 mark at home in 2017-18, the Gophers have compiled a record of 121-12-12 in home games at Ridder Arena dating back to 2011-12.
Up Next: NCAA Tournament
The 2018 NCAA Tournament field will be announced following the conclusion of conference tournament action on Sunday evening.
NCAA Frozen Four Returns to Ridder Arena
The NCAA Women's Frozen Four returns to Ridder Arena this season, marking the fourth time the national championship will be played on the Gophers' home ice. Ticket packages and single-session tickets are on sale now. The national semifinals are scheduled for Friday, March 16 with the national championship game to follow on Sunday, March 18. Ridder Arena hosted the NCAA Women's Frozen Four in 2010, 2013, and 2015.
Gophers Sign Six for 2018-19
Head coach Brad Frost and the Gophers are pleased to welcome six student-athletes for the 2018-19 season. Abigail Boreen (Somerset, Wis./Hill-Murray School), Taylor Heise (Lake City, Minn./Red Wing High School), Crystalyn Hengler (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie High School), Emily Oden (Edina, Minn./Edina High School), Gracie Ostertag (Shakopee, Minn./Shattuck St. Mary's School), and Catie Skaja (New Prague, Minn./New Prague Senior High School) make up the newest class of Gophers.
Johnson Leads U.S. Under 18 Squad to Gold
Associate head coach Joel Johnson led the U.S. Under-18 Women's National Team to its fourth-straight gold medal at the IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship in Dmitrov, Russia, in January 2018. Gopher signees Taylor Heise and Gracie Ostertag won their third-straight gold medals representing the U.S. as well.
Frost Enters Second Decade
Head coach Brad Frost is back for his 11th season at the helm of the program with a career record of 319-53-27 in his first 10 seasons. Last season, the Gophers celebrated Frost's 300th career coaching victory with a road sweep at Ohio State in October 2016.
Duo Serving as Captains
Seniors Sydney Baldwin and Cara Piazza are serving as the Gophers' co-captains this year. The duo was part of back-to-back national championship teams their freshmen and sophomore years at the University of Minnesota, and they have helped the program advance to three-straight NCAA Frozen Fours. Baldwin, a health services management and human resources development major, is a Minnetonka, Minn., native. Piazza hails from Darien, Ill., and is studying mechanical engineering; she is the first Illinois native to captain the team since Megan Bozek in 2012-13.
Who's New?
WCHA Preseason Rookie of the Year Grace Zumwinkle (Excelsior, Minn.) leads Minnesota's talented freshmen class, which also includes defense Emily Brown (Blaine, Minn.), goaltender Alex Gulstene (Vancouver, B.C.), defense Olivia Knowles (Campbell River, B.C.), and forward Taylor Wente (Maple Grove, Minn.). Junior forward Jackie Pieper (Edina, Minn.), who spent three years at Merrimack College, rounds out Minnesota's newcomers. Freshman Amy Potomak (Aldergrove, B.C.) joins the Gophers for the spring semester, but she is expected to red shirt the season after beginning the year centralized with Canada's National Women's team in preparation for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
Who's Back?
Minnesota's 2017-18 roster includes 16 players from last year's team, which advanced to the program's sixth-straight NCAA Frozen Four. Co-captains Sydney Baldwin and Cara Piazza and fellow seniors Sidney Peters and Caitlin Reilly lead this year's team.
Quest for Eighth National Title in 2017-18
Despite falling short of a third-straight national title in 2017, Minnesota has still won four of the last six national championships and has seven national titles overall (2000, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016). The program looks for a historic eighth title national crown in 2017-18.
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