What's On Tap: The Minnesota State women's hockey team returns back to Mankato this weekend to battle with Ohio State this weekend at All Seasons Arena.
The Mavericks will take on the Buckeyes on Friday night at 6:07 p.m. before finishing off the series on Saturday afternoon at 1:07 p.m.
Looking Back at Last Week: Minnesota State traveled to Duluth last weekend to take on #10 Minnesota Duluth in WCHA action. The Mavericks could not come up with that first win of the season as the Bulldogs defeated the Mavericks by scores of 3-0 and 6-3.
On Saturday junior goalkeeper
Erin Krichiver was tested early and often as she made 59 saves, the second most in a single game in program history. MSU was unable to get the puck past UMD netminder Kayla Black as she produced 15 saves of her own.
The Mavericks and Bulldogs battled back and forth on Sunday afternoon at AMSOIL Arena. UMD went up early in the first but freshman
Nicole Schammel tallied her team-leading third goal of the season to tie the score at one midway through the first period. With MSU trailing towards the end of the second period, senior
Casey Hirsch marked the first power-play goal of the season to even up the score heading into the second intermission. Junior
Katie Johnson gave the Mavericks a brief lead in the final period but UMD scored four goals in the final 20 minutes of play to defeat MSU.
Looking at the Buckeyes: Ohio State is coming into the weekend with an overall record of 5-3-0 and is 3-3-0 in WCHA play. The Buckeyes hosted St. Cloud State last weekend in Columbus losing to the Huskies on Friday 4-2. On Saturday they came back and shutout SCSU winning by a final score of 3-0.
The Buckeyes are led by head coach Nate Handrahan who is in his third year at the helm of the program. Handrahan has compiled a record of 55-51-12 in his career at Ohio State. Junior Julia McKinnon (F, 5-9, Kelowna, B.C.) leads the team with four goals and has added one assist for five points during the 2014-15 season. Senior Sara Schmitt (D, 5-11, Canton, Mich.) also has five points this season totaling 2-3--5. Freshman Kassidy Sauve (G, 5-9, Whitby, Ont. ) owns a record of 5-3-0 starting every game in net for OSU. She has compiled 180 saves owning a save percentage of .923 and a goals against average of 1.95.
The Buckeyes are outshooting their opponents 229-202 and averaging 2.00 goals per game while allowing 2.12. They are also one of the most penalized teams in the league averaging 11.5 penalty minutes a game.
Last Time Around: Last season Minnesota State swept Ohio State at All Seasons Arena by scores of 2-1 and 3-1. OSU got its revenge though, sweeping MSU in Columbus by scores of 3-2 and 4-2.
Minnesota State All-Time: The MSU women's hockey program - started in 1998-99 - is currently in its 17th season of competition and has compiled a 158-356-48 (.326) record in 562 total games played. The Mavericks are in their 16th year as members of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and boast an 89-279-40 (.270) mark in 404 league contests.
Freshman Impact: Seven different freshman have scored a point so for this season for the Purple and Gold.
Elin Johansson scored the Mavericks first goal of the season against UND.
Nicole Schammel and
Hannah Davidson lead the team with four points each.
Lindsey Coleman,
Emma Wittchow,
Amanda Martin and
Anna Keys each have an assist on the season.
Welcome to Mankato: The Mavericks bring in 12 freshman to this seasons squad including eight forwards, three defenseman, and one goalie. Five of the newcomers will continue to play in their home state of Minnesota. Three other players come to the Mavericks from Arizona, Colorado and Illinois. The final four come from outside the United States with two coming from Ontario, Canada and the other two from Sweden and Norway.
Goalie with the Assist? Yeah that's right. Junior netminder
Erin Krichiver talied an assist against Minnesota Duluth last Sunday. It is the first time a goalie has recorded an assist since Paige Thunder did so back in 2009. Krichiver also recorded the second most saves in a game totaling 59 against the Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon.
MSU vs. Opponents: The Mavericks are averaging 1.00 goal per game compared to allowing 3.62. They are also being outshot 353-134 so far this season. MSU will look to improve its special teams as they have scored just once with the extra skater this season while killing off just 71.1 percent of its penalties.
Protecting Our House: MSU dropped its first series at home to start the season against North Dakota at all Seasons Arena. The Mavericks now stand 91-152-29 all-time at home. The Mavericks have called the arena home since their inception in 1998.
Road Warriors: The Purple and Gold are 0-4-1 on the road so far this season as they dropped a couple of contests on the road last weekend against No. 10 Minnesota Duluth. The Mavericks owned a 6-13-0 record on the road last season and swept Lindenwood on Oct. 11-12 and North Dakota on Feb. 15-16.
Beat the Best to Be the Best: Four teams in the WCHA are ranked in the top-ten of the USCHO and USA Today/USA Hockey polls this week. Minnesota comes in at No. 2, Wisconsin is No. 3, North Dakota is No. 10 in the USCHO poll and No. 9 in the USA Today/USA Hockey poll while Minnesota Duluth is just the opposite.
The Mavericks are 0-6-0 against top-ten ranked opponents this season losing a couple of games against North Dakota to start the season and dropping a pair of contests against Mercyhurst and Minnesota Duluth the past couple of weekends.
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