Gophers women's hockey makes statement defeating No. 2 Ohio State 3-1

Gophers coach Brad Frost couldn’t remember the last time his team beat Ohio State. Gophers senior center Ella Huber couldn’t remember the Gophers playing a better game. ADVERTISEMENT It was that kind of night for the No.

3 Gophers at Ridder Arena on Friday. Their 3-1 victory over the No. 2 Buckeyes was an eye-opener, as the Gophers clearly outplayed the defending national champions in extending their winning streak to seven games.



Huber said the Gophers (22-5-1, 16-4-1 WCHA) were a confident bunch coming in, and they played like it, breaking open a scoreless game in the third period with three unanswered goals. “We talked about it (in the locker room after the game), just one of our best team wins of the year,” Huber said. “It was just cool to see how we can play when we’re playing together.

” With the victory, Gophers move three points ahead of the Buckeyes for second place in the WCHA. The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Buckeyes (20-6-3, 14-6-3), who last lost on Jan. 2 to No.

1 Wisconsin. “This was one of those wins that you can hang your hat on,” Frost said. “Now, can we do it again tomorrow is the question.

” For the record, the Gophers’ last win over the Buckeyes came March 4, 2023, in the WCHA Final Faceoff. This season, the teams met in Columbus in October, with the Buckeyes winning the opener 4-3 and the second game going in the books as a 1-1 tie, with OSU getting the extra point in a shootout. Friday night, the Gophers were the better team from the opening faceoff, and that didn’t change the remainder of the game.

The Gophers easily could have been up at least 2-0 after the first 20 minutes. Abbey Murphy was stopped on a breakaway at 6:56 of the period, already her third good scoring chance of the game. ADVERTISEMENT “Great first period,” Frost said.

“We had some Grade-A looks there early; missed the net on a couple of them, a couple of breakaways.” Huber broke the scoreless tie at 1:01 of the third period while the Gophers were on a 4-on-3 power play. The senior from Chicago was just off the crease to bat in the rebound of a Sydney Morrow shot from the point.

Huber’s second goal of the game and ninth of the season came at 7:52, once again slipping the puck past Buckeyes goaltender Amanda Thiele from just off the crease. “I was literally behind the goal line,” Huber said of her second goal. “I just threw the puck on the net and somehow it went in.

” The Gophers went on a five-minute power play less than a minute later, and needed only 17 seconds to make it a 3-0 game when Murphy beat Thiele on a wrist shot from the left-wing circle for her 24th goal of the season. Gophers goaltender Hannah Clark lost her bid for a shutout at 17:59 when OSU’s Emily Zumwinkle, a former Gophers defender, scored after a Buckeyes power play had just ended. Overall, the Gophers did a standout job of limiting the high-powered Buckeyes’ quality scoring chances.

ADVERTISEMENT “They had a few late and it got a little hairy,” Frost said, “but we just did a really nice job of staying in our structure, blocking shots, paying the price.” The Buckeyes played their typical physical style of hockey, but the Gophers didn’t allow it to take them off their game. “This was tame compared to at their place,” Frost said.

“Whenever our two teams play there’s not a lot of love lost. Both teams want it real bad and have world-class players that don’t want to give an inch.” The Gophers badly want to complete the sweep Saturday.

They probably will have to play even better than they did Friday to make it happen. “The confidence for our team going into tomorrow ..

.” Frost said. “They know it’s not just another game.

When you’re playing Ohio State you’ve got to bring a little more to the table, and they’re going to do that.” Minnesota Frost forward Grace Zumwinkle was in attendance to support the Gophers, her former team, as well as her sister. Frost general manager Melissa Caruso also took in the game.

______________________________________________________ This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers. Learn more about the news services FCC uses here .

.