University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, March 14
4:00 PM
University of Minnesota
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Ohio State
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Photo by: Bruce Kluckhohn
Familiar Foe Awaits in NCAA Quarterfinal
3/9/2020 4:15:00 PM | Women's Hockey
No. 4 Minnesota hosts No. 5 Ohio State in the NCAA quarterfinal round this Saturday at Ridder Arena.
MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 4 seed Golden Gophers (27-6-3) host Ohio State (24-8-6) in the NCAA quarterfinal round at 4p.m. Saturday at Ridder Arena with a trip to the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four on the line.
NCAA Tournament: How They Got Here
Mercyhurst (CHA), Princeton (ECAC Hockey), No. 3 seed Northeastern (Hockey East), and Ohio State (WCHA) earned automatic bids by winning their respective conference tournaments while No. 4 seed Minnesota, No. 1 seed Cornell, No. 2 seed Wisconsin, and Clarkson earned at-large bids. In the other three quarterfinal match-ups, Cornell (28-2-3) hosts Mercyhurst (21-10-5), Wisconsin (28-5-3) hosts Clarkson (25-6-6), and Northeastern (32-4-2) hosts Princeton (26-6-1).
Gophers in the NCAA Postseason
Minnesota is making its 13th-straight and 18th overall appearance in the NCAA postseason. The 2020 WCHA regular-season runner-up Gophers have won seven national championships, and Minnesota has only missed the NCAA tournament twice in its 20-year history. Overall, the Gophers are 26-12-1 in NCAA tournament games since 2000-01. The Gophers are 11-3 all-time in NCAA quarterfinal games since the tournament expanded to eight teams in 2005. A year ago, Minnesota defeated Princeton 5-2 in the NCAA quarterfinal round. This season, Minnesota looks to secure the program's 15th overall appearance at the Frozen Four.
About the Series: Gophers vs. Buckeyes
Minnesota is 76-15-5 all-time against Ohio State in a series dating back to November 1999. This season, the teams split both regular-season series. Minnesota fell 4-3 in game one before winning 4-2 in game two in Columbus, Ohio, back in October, and the Gophers dropped a 4-1 decision in game one before winning 2-1 in game two in Minneapolis in January. Most recently, Minnesota fell 4-3 in overtime to Ohio State in the WCHA semifinal round last weekend.
Last Time Out: Gophers Fall to Buckeyes
Minnesota (27-6-3) earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after falling to the Buckeyes in the WCHA semifinals last weekend. The Gophers dropped a 4-3 overtime decision to Ohio State despite two goals from Amy Potomak and one from Taylor Heise along with a 24-save effort from Sydney Scobee.
Scoring Milestones
Sarah Potomak is Minnesota's active career scoring leader, ranked 11th in Gophers' history with 179 career points (65g-114a). She is chasing 10th-ranked Kelly Pannek (72g-114a) with 186 career points. Her 114 career assists are tied for sixth 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, Emily Brown, and Olivia Knowles 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
The line of Sarah Potomak (19g-27a), Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a), and Taylor Heise (18g-25a) leads Minnesota in scoring, combining for 134 points this season.
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 402-76-34. 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, Scobee ranks third in the NCAA with eight shutouts this season. She ranks sixth in the NCAA with a 1.68 goals against average and is 15th in the nation with a .928 save percentage.
Career-High Scoring
Eight Gophers have reached career-highs for points this season: Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a), Taylor Heise (18g-25a), Amy Potomak (18g-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 109-31-12 in 152 games (.757 winning percentage) from 2016-17 to 2019-20. They are making their fourth NCAA tournament appearance this season after finishing as NCAA runners-up last year. 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 222 assists for 350 points as a class.
Up Next: NCAA Frozen Four
The four quarterfinal winners advance to the 2020 NCAA Women's Frozen Four, which will be hosted by Boston University on March 20 and 22 at Agganis Arena in Boston. The semifinal games are set for 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. CT on Friday, March 20 while the national championship game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. CT on Sunday, March 22. All three games will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
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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NCAA Tournament: How They Got Here
Mercyhurst (CHA), Princeton (ECAC Hockey), No. 3 seed Northeastern (Hockey East), and Ohio State (WCHA) earned automatic bids by winning their respective conference tournaments while No. 4 seed Minnesota, No. 1 seed Cornell, No. 2 seed Wisconsin, and Clarkson earned at-large bids. In the other three quarterfinal match-ups, Cornell (28-2-3) hosts Mercyhurst (21-10-5), Wisconsin (28-5-3) hosts Clarkson (25-6-6), and Northeastern (32-4-2) hosts Princeton (26-6-1).
Gophers in the NCAA Postseason
Minnesota is making its 13th-straight and 18th overall appearance in the NCAA postseason. The 2020 WCHA regular-season runner-up Gophers have won seven national championships, and Minnesota has only missed the NCAA tournament twice in its 20-year history. Overall, the Gophers are 26-12-1 in NCAA tournament games since 2000-01. The Gophers are 11-3 all-time in NCAA quarterfinal games since the tournament expanded to eight teams in 2005. A year ago, Minnesota defeated Princeton 5-2 in the NCAA quarterfinal round. This season, Minnesota looks to secure the program's 15th overall appearance at the Frozen Four.
About the Series: Gophers vs. Buckeyes
Minnesota is 76-15-5 all-time against Ohio State in a series dating back to November 1999. This season, the teams split both regular-season series. Minnesota fell 4-3 in game one before winning 4-2 in game two in Columbus, Ohio, back in October, and the Gophers dropped a 4-1 decision in game one before winning 2-1 in game two in Minneapolis in January. Most recently, Minnesota fell 4-3 in overtime to Ohio State in the WCHA semifinal round last weekend.
Last Time Out: Gophers Fall to Buckeyes
Minnesota (27-6-3) earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after falling to the Buckeyes in the WCHA semifinals last weekend. The Gophers dropped a 4-3 overtime decision to Ohio State despite two goals from Amy Potomak and one from Taylor Heise along with a 24-save effort from Sydney Scobee.
Scoring Milestones
Sarah Potomak is Minnesota's active career scoring leader, ranked 11th in Gophers' history with 179 career points (65g-114a). She is chasing 10th-ranked Kelly Pannek (72g-114a) with 186 career points. Her 114 career assists are tied for sixth 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, Emily Brown, and Olivia Knowles 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
The line of Sarah Potomak (19g-27a), Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a), and Taylor Heise (18g-25a) leads Minnesota in scoring, combining for 134 points this season.
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 402-76-34. 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, Scobee ranks third in the NCAA with eight shutouts this season. She ranks sixth in the NCAA with a 1.68 goals against average and is 15th in the nation with a .928 save percentage.
Career-High Scoring
Eight Gophers have reached career-highs for points this season: Grace Zumwinkle (25g-20a), Taylor Heise (18g-25a), Amy Potomak (18g-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 92.1 percent (82-for-89) 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 109-31-12 in 152 games (.757 winning percentage) from 2016-17 to 2019-20. They are making their fourth NCAA tournament appearance this season after finishing as NCAA runners-up last year. 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 222 assists for 350 points as a class.
Up Next: NCAA Frozen Four
The four quarterfinal winners advance to the 2020 NCAA Women's Frozen Four, which will be hosted by Boston University on March 20 and 22 at Agganis Arena in Boston. The semifinal games are set for 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. CT on Friday, March 20 while the national championship game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. CT on Sunday, March 22. All three games will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
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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