University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, February 12
3:00 PM
University of Minnesota
24-7-1, 19-6-1
5
vs
1
St. Cloud State
9-19-2, 4-18-2
1
2
3
F
St. Cloud St.
1
0
0
1
Minnesota
1
1
3
5
Photo by: Eric Miller
Gophers Shut Down St. Cloud State for Second Consecutive Sweep
2/12/2022 6:39:00 PM | Women's Hockey
Minnesota allowed only 11 shots in the final two periods to secure a 5-1 victory at Ridder Arena.
MINNEAPOLIS -- The No. 1 Golden Gopher women's hockey team picked up its fifth straight win with a 5-1 victory over the Huskies on Friday afternoon at Ridder Arena. With the sweep, Minnesota stands two victories away from its 11th WCHA regular season title.
Minnesota (24-7-1) returned to its fast-starting form on Saturday with a goal 3:05 into the contest from senior Catie Skaja. The forward's 13th goal of the season was answered just over five minutes later by St. Cloud State's (9-19-2) Olivia Cvar to even the score entering the first intermission. It took over 15 minutes of second period play for the deadlock to be broken. Senior Savannah Norcross redirected an Olivia Knowles shot for lead and her seventh of the season. Knowles added a goal of her own in the third before the Gophers pulled away thanks to a pair of short-handed goals by Skaja and Ella Huber.
Goaltender Makayla Pahl made 19 saves in her 9th victory of the season. The junior recorded her second assist of the season on Minnesota's final goal of the game. St. Cloud State's Ahola made 42 saves in the defeat.
Quotable
"A big three points here tonight," said head coach Brad Frost. "Our team continued to get better as the game wore on and were able to pull away at the end. We had some good goaltending and timely goals. All in all, a really good weekend for us and a big six points. We're going to enjoy this and get ready for St. Thomas next week."
Notable
Fifth-year defender Olivia Knowles recorded her second three-point game this season against the Huskies. Knowles played in her 161st game with Minnesota, moving her into a tie for third in program history. Fifth-year Emily Brown played in her 160th game, moving her into sole possession of seventh place in program history. Catie Skaja recorded her second two-goal game this season and fourth of her career.
Up Next
The Gophers and Tommies close out the regular season with a home-and-home series next weekend. Thursday's contest will take place at St. Thomas Ice Arena at 7:00 pm, while Minnesota's senior day will take place at 4:00 pm on Saturday at Ridder Arena.
Minnesota (24-7-1) returned to its fast-starting form on Saturday with a goal 3:05 into the contest from senior Catie Skaja. The forward's 13th goal of the season was answered just over five minutes later by St. Cloud State's (9-19-2) Olivia Cvar to even the score entering the first intermission. It took over 15 minutes of second period play for the deadlock to be broken. Senior Savannah Norcross redirected an Olivia Knowles shot for lead and her seventh of the season. Knowles added a goal of her own in the third before the Gophers pulled away thanks to a pair of short-handed goals by Skaja and Ella Huber.
Goaltender Makayla Pahl made 19 saves in her 9th victory of the season. The junior recorded her second assist of the season on Minnesota's final goal of the game. St. Cloud State's Ahola made 42 saves in the defeat.
Quotable
"A big three points here tonight," said head coach Brad Frost. "Our team continued to get better as the game wore on and were able to pull away at the end. We had some good goaltending and timely goals. All in all, a really good weekend for us and a big six points. We're going to enjoy this and get ready for St. Thomas next week."
Notable
Fifth-year defender Olivia Knowles recorded her second three-point game this season against the Huskies. Knowles played in her 161st game with Minnesota, moving her into a tie for third in program history. Fifth-year Emily Brown played in her 160th game, moving her into sole possession of seventh place in program history. Catie Skaja recorded her second two-goal game this season and fourth of her career.
Up Next
The Gophers and Tommies close out the regular season with a home-and-home series next weekend. Thursday's contest will take place at St. Thomas Ice Arena at 7:00 pm, while Minnesota's senior day will take place at 4:00 pm on Saturday at Ridder Arena.
Team Stats
SCS
MIN
Shots
20
47
PPG
1
0
SHG
0
2
Penalties
2
4
Penalty Mins
4
8
Faceoffs Won
18
39
Game Leaders
Skaters
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
2
A
2
+/-
2
Goals
2
Sh
9
A
0
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
0
+/-
1
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
0
Players Mentioned
D
/ Women's HockeyF
/ Women's HockeyD
/ Women's HockeyF
/ Women's Hockey
G
/ Women's HockeyF
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