What's On Tap:  The Mavericks now take hold of a 2-3-1 overall record and a 0-2 record in the WCHA after losing two games to #6 North Dakota last weekend.  Now MSU hits the road for their second away series of the year against Minnesota Duluth (2-4-0, 0-2 WCHA).

Looking Back at Last Weekend:   Minnesota State was downed by a sixth-rated North Dakota last Friday and Saturday, as the Mavericks were out scored in the two games 2-1 and 4-2.  In Friday afternoon's loss, UND scored two-second period goals to take the lead.  MSU was able to bury one goal past UND's goaltender Shelby Amsley-Benzie at the 17:55 mark of the second period as sophomore Elin Johansson recorded her third goal on the year.  On Saturday, the Mavericks scored early to take a 1-0 lead just three minutes and 45 seconds into the game. Johansson and sophomore Hannah Davidson connected for the second time on the weekend for Johansson's fourth goal in four games and Davidson's eighth point in six games.  UND scored the next to goals in the game, coming in the second and third periods.  Freshman Leila Kilduff was able to notch things at two apiece on the power-play at the 9:41 mark of the third period. Freshman Emily Antony and sophomore Anna Keys picked up assists on the play.  UND eventually netted one more goal and an empty-net goal to seal the deal at 4-2.

Streaking:  Davidson, along with Johansson are off to a great start in 2015, as they are leading MSU in points (Davidson, 8), goals (Johansson, 4), and assists (Davidson, 7).  Over the last four games that the Mavericks have played, Johansson has been a catalyst as she has tallied a goal in each one of those contests.  Davidson, a Kincardine, Ont., native is also on a hot streak producing eight points in the first six games of the season.  Along with leading the team in points, she has also netted at least a point in all six games, including two games with two points.

Looking at the Bulldogs: Minnesota Duluth comes into the weekend with an overall record of 2-4-0 and a 0-2 record in WCHA play. The Bulldogs are coming off of a weekend in which they were swept by Bemidji State.  Last Friday UMD was shutout 2-0 and lost a battle on Saturday 2-1 in overtime in Bemidji, Minn.

Minnesota Duluth is led by newly hired head coach Maura Crowell.  Crowell, who becomes just the second head coach in the 16-year history of the Bulldog program, served as Harvard's associate head coach this past season after filling an interim head coaching role in 2013-14. She was a Crimson assistant coach from 2010-13.  Junior Ashleigh Brykaliuk leads the team with 6 points after recording 2 goals and 4 assists in 5 games played this season while junior Lara Stalder  has recorded 5 goals in 5 games played. Senior netminder Kayla Black  has seen the majority of playing time in goal for the Bulldogs and owns a record of 2-2-0 with a goals against average of 2.94 and a save percentage of .896.

The Bulldogs are averaging 2 goals per game while allowing 2.67 goals per game. They are also outshooting their opponents averaging 34.5 shots per game while allowing 29.

Last Time Around: The Mavericks have lost nine straight games against the Bulldogs. Last season, MSU went 0-4 against UMD getting out scored 25-3.

Freshman Fire: Of the top scoring 22 freshman in the WCHA through the first three weeks of competition, Minnesota State has six including Corbin Boyd (T-5th), Emily Antony (T-5th), Jordan McLaughlin (T-13th), Leila Kilduff (T-13th), Emily Harris (T-13th), and Lena Duesterhoeft (T-13th).  The next highest teams in the league have three (Ohio State, North Dakota, St. Cloud State, and Wisconsin).

Looking Ahead:  After this weekend's series with Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State will wrap up their four-game road-stand with a pair of contests in Columbus, Ohio against the Buckeyes of Ohio State.  The games will take place October 23-24 with puck drop scheduled for 6:07 p.m. Friday and 1:07 p.m. Saturday.