University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, March 7
Ridder Arena
5:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
Ohio State
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Photo by: Brad Rempel
WCHA Final Faceoff Up Next
3/2/2020 1:30:00 PM | Women's Hockey
Minnesota meets Ohio State in the WCHA semifinals at 5:07 p.m. CT Saturday at Ridder Arena.
MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 2 seed Golden Gophers (27-5-3) face No. 3 seed Ohio State (22-8-6) in the WCHA semifinal round at 5 p.m. CT Saturday at Ridder Arena.
This year marks the 13th time the WCHA Final Faceoff has been held at Ridder Arena. Prior to the semifinal match-up between the Gophers and Buckeyes, No. 1 seed Wisconsin (27-4-3) meets No. 4 seed Minnesota Duluth (18-11-6) in the first semifinal at 2 p.m. CT Saturday. The semifinal winners meet in Sunday's league championship game at 2 p.m. CT.
The semifinal games will be streamed via FloHockey ($) and BTN+($); the championship game will be broadcast live on FOX Sports North and FOX Sports Wisconsin and be available online via FOX Sports Go. Fans can also follow along via free audio and live stats at GopherSports.com.
WCHA First Round Rewind: How They Got Here
WCHA regular-season champion Wisconsin advanced straight to the WCHA Final Faceoff. No. 2 seed Minnesota swept No. 7 seed St. Cloud State with 4-2 and 7-3 wins while No. 3 seed Ohio State knocked out No. 6 seed Minnesota State with 4-2 and 1-0 wins. No. 4 seed Minnesota Duluth needed three games and five overtimes to take down No. 5 seed Bemidji State as the Bulldogs won 2-1 (OT) in game one, fell 2-1 (4OT) in game two, and closed the series with a 4-1 win in game three.
Gophers in the WCHA Postseason
The Gophers are making their 21st-consecutive appearance in the WCHA semifinals. Minnesota has won seven WCHA postseason titles, most recently winning the WCHA Final Faceoff in 2018. The Gophers won three-straight titles from 2012-2014; the Maroon & Gold also won WCHA postseason titles in 2002, 2004, and 2005. Minnesota has a 51-15-0 all-time mark in WCHA postseason games.
Last Time Out: Gophers Sweep Huskies
Minnesota (27-5-3) advanced to the WCHA Final Faceoff with a WCHA First Round sweep over St. Cloud State with 4-2 and 7-3 wins. Grace Zumwinkle (3g-1a), Sarah Potomak (1g-3a), Amy Potomak (2g-1a), Emily Brown (1g-2a), Taylor Heise (3a), and Emily Oden (3a) led the Gophers in scoring against the Huskies, and Sydney Scobee picked up both wins in net.
Scoring Milestones
Sarah Potomak is Minnesota's active career scoring leader, ranked 11th in Gophers' history with 178 career points (65g-113a). She is chasing 10th-ranked Kelly Pannek (72g-114a) with 186 career points. Her 113 career assists rank seventh among all-time Gophers as well.
Two Gophers hit milestones in Minnesota's sweep over Bemidji State (Nov. 15-16) as S. Potomak recorded her 150th career point and Grace Zumwinkle recorded her 100th point. Amy Potomak, Alex Woken, Taylor Heise, and Emily Brown have all reached the 50-career points mark this season, and Patti Marshall recorded her 50th career assist against Harvard (Nov. 30).
Top Line Delivers
Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a) and Sarah Potomak (19g-26a) lead Minnesota with 45 points each while Taylor Heise (17g-25a) is third on the team in scoring with 42 points.
Coaching Milestone
Minnesota's 3-0 win over Minnesota State (Feb. 22) marked head coach Brad Frost's 400th career win at the helm of the Gophers. Frost's career coaching record stands at 402-75-34. He ranks fifth among all-time NCAA national collegiate women's hockey coaches.
League's Best Goaltending
Sydney Scobee was named the WCHA Goaltending Champion with a 1.63 goals against average, 17 wins, and six shutouts in 24 WCHA league games. For the season, Sydney Scobee ranks third in the NCAA with eight shutouts this season. She leads the WCHA with a 1.61 goals against average and a .930 save percentage while ranking among the nation's top goaltenders in both categories as well.
Career-High Scoring
Eight Gophers have reached career-highs for points this season: Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a), Taylor Heise (17g-25a), Amy Potomak (16g-18a), Alex Woken (16g-16a), Emily Oden (7g-18a), Catie Skaja (7g-7a), Gracie Ostertag (1g-10a), and Abigail Boreen (2g-8a).
Notable Notes
Senior Salute
The Gophers celebrated their six seniors, captain Patti Marshall, assistant captain Alex Woken, Kippin Keller, Sarah Potomak, Katie Robinson, and Sydney Scobee during their final regular-season series. The senior class has led Minnesota to an overall record of 109-30-12 in 151 games (.762 winning percentage) from 2016-17 to 2019-20. They have made three NCAA tournament appearances, including a 2019 NCAA runner-up finish. The class has raised banners as 2019 WCHA regular-season champions and 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff champions, and these six Gophers have combined for 128 goals and 221 assists for 349 points as a class.
Up Next: NCAA Tournament
The NCAA postseason begins next weekend with the quarterfinal round. Minnesota will learn its NCAA tournament fate when the 2020 NCAA Women's Hockey Selection Show airs live on NCAA.com at 8 p.m. CT Sunday evening.
Gopher Nation
With games against Boston College and Harvard at the Country Classic in Nashville earlier this season, Tennessee became the 15th state in which Minnesota has played games since the first year of the program in 1997-98. The Gophers have competed in Connecticut, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
Gophers Celebrate Hockey Day Minnesota
Minnesota played its second outdoor game in program history when the Gophers hosted the Buckeyes outdoors at Parade Stadium in downtown Minneapolis as part of this year's Hockey Day Minnesota celebration. With a 2-1 win over Ohio State, the Gophers are undefeated in outdoor games after the program's first-ever outdoor game saw the Maroon & Gold earn a 4-0 win over Minnesota State in the Hockey City Classic at TCF Bank Stadium on Jan. 17, 2014.
Gophers in the NWHL
Seven University of Minnesota alumnae are playing for the Minnesota Whitecaps this year. Sydney Baldwin, Winny Brodt Brown, Chelsey Brodt Rosenthal, Kelsey Cline, Amanda Leveille, Meghan Lorence, and Nicole Schammel are the Gophers playing in the NWHL this season.
Gophers Add Seven for 2020-21
Head coach Brad Frost and the Gopher women's hockey program are pleased to announce the addition for seven incoming student-athletes for the 2020-21 season. Forward Addie Burton (Orono, Minn./Blake School), forward Anne Cherkowski (Coldstream, B.C./Pursuit of Excellence), defense Josey Dunne (O'Fallon, Mo./Chicago Mission), forward Tella Jungels (Edina, Minn./Edina High School), forward Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park, Ill./Chicago Mission), defense Maggie Nicholson (Minnetonka, Minn./Minnetonka High School), and forward Audrey Wethington (Edina, Minn./Blake School) make up the newest class of Gophers.
Twenty Years Ago
This season marks the 20-year anniversary of Minnesota's 1999-2000 AWCHA national championship season. Under the direction of head coach Laura Halldorsen, the 1999-2000 Gophers became the first women's team to win a national title in Minnesota history. After defeating rival Minnesota Duluth by a score of 3-2 in the national semifinal, the Gophers went on to defeat Brown, 4-2, to claim the national title.
2018-19 Season in Review
Minnesota wrapped up the 22nd season of Gopher women's hockey as NCAA and WCHA Final Faceoff runners-up in 2018-19. The Maroon & Gold took home the program's 10th WCHA regular-season title and said goodbye to eight graduating seniors in head coach Brad Frost's 12th season at the helm of the program. The Gophers posted an overall record of 32-6-1 as they fell one game short of a national title.
Quest for Eighth National Title Continues
Minnesota has won seven national championships (2000, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016) and looks for a historic eighth title national crown in 2019-20.
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This year marks the 13th time the WCHA Final Faceoff has been held at Ridder Arena. Prior to the semifinal match-up between the Gophers and Buckeyes, No. 1 seed Wisconsin (27-4-3) meets No. 4 seed Minnesota Duluth (18-11-6) in the first semifinal at 2 p.m. CT Saturday. The semifinal winners meet in Sunday's league championship game at 2 p.m. CT.
The semifinal games will be streamed via FloHockey ($) and BTN+($); the championship game will be broadcast live on FOX Sports North and FOX Sports Wisconsin and be available online via FOX Sports Go. Fans can also follow along via free audio and live stats at GopherSports.com.
WCHA First Round Rewind: How They Got Here
WCHA regular-season champion Wisconsin advanced straight to the WCHA Final Faceoff. No. 2 seed Minnesota swept No. 7 seed St. Cloud State with 4-2 and 7-3 wins while No. 3 seed Ohio State knocked out No. 6 seed Minnesota State with 4-2 and 1-0 wins. No. 4 seed Minnesota Duluth needed three games and five overtimes to take down No. 5 seed Bemidji State as the Bulldogs won 2-1 (OT) in game one, fell 2-1 (4OT) in game two, and closed the series with a 4-1 win in game three.
Gophers in the WCHA Postseason
The Gophers are making their 21st-consecutive appearance in the WCHA semifinals. Minnesota has won seven WCHA postseason titles, most recently winning the WCHA Final Faceoff in 2018. The Gophers won three-straight titles from 2012-2014; the Maroon & Gold also won WCHA postseason titles in 2002, 2004, and 2005. Minnesota has a 51-15-0 all-time mark in WCHA postseason games.
Last Time Out: Gophers Sweep Huskies
Minnesota (27-5-3) advanced to the WCHA Final Faceoff with a WCHA First Round sweep over St. Cloud State with 4-2 and 7-3 wins. Grace Zumwinkle (3g-1a), Sarah Potomak (1g-3a), Amy Potomak (2g-1a), Emily Brown (1g-2a), Taylor Heise (3a), and Emily Oden (3a) led the Gophers in scoring against the Huskies, and Sydney Scobee picked up both wins in net.
Scoring Milestones
Sarah Potomak is Minnesota's active career scoring leader, ranked 11th in Gophers' history with 178 career points (65g-113a). She is chasing 10th-ranked Kelly Pannek (72g-114a) with 186 career points. Her 113 career assists rank seventh among all-time Gophers as well.
Two Gophers hit milestones in Minnesota's sweep over Bemidji State (Nov. 15-16) as S. Potomak recorded her 150th career point and Grace Zumwinkle recorded her 100th point. Amy Potomak, Alex Woken, Taylor Heise, and Emily Brown have all reached the 50-career points mark this season, and Patti Marshall recorded her 50th career assist against Harvard (Nov. 30).
Top Line Delivers
Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a) and Sarah Potomak (19g-26a) lead Minnesota with 45 points each while Taylor Heise (17g-25a) is third on the team in scoring with 42 points.
Coaching Milestone
Minnesota's 3-0 win over Minnesota State (Feb. 22) marked head coach Brad Frost's 400th career win at the helm of the Gophers. Frost's career coaching record stands at 402-75-34. He ranks fifth among all-time NCAA national collegiate women's hockey coaches.
League's Best Goaltending
Sydney Scobee was named the WCHA Goaltending Champion with a 1.63 goals against average, 17 wins, and six shutouts in 24 WCHA league games. For the season, Sydney Scobee ranks third in the NCAA with eight shutouts this season. She leads the WCHA with a 1.61 goals against average and a .930 save percentage while ranking among the nation's top goaltenders in both categories as well.
Career-High Scoring
Eight Gophers have reached career-highs for points this season: Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a), Taylor Heise (17g-25a), Amy Potomak (16g-18a), Alex Woken (16g-16a), Emily Oden (7g-18a), Catie Skaja (7g-7a), Gracie Ostertag (1g-10a), and Abigail Boreen (2g-8a).
Notable Notes
- Minnesota leads the WCHA and ranks second in the nation at 92.0 percent (81-for-88) on the penalty kill this season.
- The Gophers are fifth in the NCAA, averaging just 5.9 penalty minutes per game.
- Grace Zumwinkle, Sarah Potomak, and Madeline Wethington each have a team-best four game-winning goals this season.
Senior Salute
The Gophers celebrated their six seniors, captain Patti Marshall, assistant captain Alex Woken, Kippin Keller, Sarah Potomak, Katie Robinson, and Sydney Scobee during their final regular-season series. The senior class has led Minnesota to an overall record of 109-30-12 in 151 games (.762 winning percentage) from 2016-17 to 2019-20. They have made three NCAA tournament appearances, including a 2019 NCAA runner-up finish. The class has raised banners as 2019 WCHA regular-season champions and 2018 WCHA Final Faceoff champions, and these six Gophers have combined for 128 goals and 221 assists for 349 points as a class.
Up Next: NCAA Tournament
The NCAA postseason begins next weekend with the quarterfinal round. Minnesota will learn its NCAA tournament fate when the 2020 NCAA Women's Hockey Selection Show airs live on NCAA.com at 8 p.m. CT Sunday evening.
Gopher Nation
With games against Boston College and Harvard at the Country Classic in Nashville earlier this season, Tennessee became the 15th state in which Minnesota has played games since the first year of the program in 1997-98. The Gophers have competed in Connecticut, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
Gophers Celebrate Hockey Day Minnesota
Minnesota played its second outdoor game in program history when the Gophers hosted the Buckeyes outdoors at Parade Stadium in downtown Minneapolis as part of this year's Hockey Day Minnesota celebration. With a 2-1 win over Ohio State, the Gophers are undefeated in outdoor games after the program's first-ever outdoor game saw the Maroon & Gold earn a 4-0 win over Minnesota State in the Hockey City Classic at TCF Bank Stadium on Jan. 17, 2014.
Gophers in the NWHL
Seven University of Minnesota alumnae are playing for the Minnesota Whitecaps this year. Sydney Baldwin, Winny Brodt Brown, Chelsey Brodt Rosenthal, Kelsey Cline, Amanda Leveille, Meghan Lorence, and Nicole Schammel are the Gophers playing in the NWHL this season.
Gophers Add Seven for 2020-21
Head coach Brad Frost and the Gopher women's hockey program are pleased to announce the addition for seven incoming student-athletes for the 2020-21 season. Forward Addie Burton (Orono, Minn./Blake School), forward Anne Cherkowski (Coldstream, B.C./Pursuit of Excellence), defense Josey Dunne (O'Fallon, Mo./Chicago Mission), forward Tella Jungels (Edina, Minn./Edina High School), forward Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park, Ill./Chicago Mission), defense Maggie Nicholson (Minnetonka, Minn./Minnetonka High School), and forward Audrey Wethington (Edina, Minn./Blake School) make up the newest class of Gophers.
Twenty Years Ago
This season marks the 20-year anniversary of Minnesota's 1999-2000 AWCHA national championship season. Under the direction of head coach Laura Halldorsen, the 1999-2000 Gophers became the first women's team to win a national title in Minnesota history. After defeating rival Minnesota Duluth by a score of 3-2 in the national semifinal, the Gophers went on to defeat Brown, 4-2, to claim the national title.
2018-19 Season in Review
Minnesota wrapped up the 22nd season of Gopher women's hockey as NCAA and WCHA Final Faceoff runners-up in 2018-19. The Maroon & Gold took home the program's 10th WCHA regular-season title and said goodbye to eight graduating seniors in head coach Brad Frost's 12th season at the helm of the program. The Gophers posted an overall record of 32-6-1 as they fell one game short of a national title.
Quest for Eighth National Title Continues
Minnesota has won seven national championships (2000, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016) and looks for a historic eighth title national crown in 2019-20.
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