MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. --- Minnesota State and No. 2 Minnesota were scoreless after one period of play, but the Gophers scored three goals in the second period to defeat the Mavericks by a final score of 5-1 in the first round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs.

The Mavericks outshot the Gophers 15-3 in the first period as neither team was able to light up the scoreboard and it wasn't until the 4:16 mark of the middle period when we would see the game's first goal. Minnesota's Maryanne Menefee tipped one past senior netminder Erin Krichiver put the Gopher's up 1-0. Menefee increased the lead to 2-0 at 5:59 and at 16:12 Kelly Pannek scored to give the Gophers a 3-0 lead after two periods of play.

In the final period the Mavericks got on the scoreboard at 11:23 as senior Kathleen Rogan tallied her fourth goal of the year. Freshman Nicole Schammel and sophomore Anna Fiegert both were credited with assists on the scoring play. The Gophers added two goals of their own in the final period to bring us to a final score of 5-1.

Krichiver made 31 saves for the Mavericks on the afternoon. Schammel led the team with nine shots on goal while Rogan had eight.

Shots on goal were even the whole night but in the end the Gophers held a 36-35 advantage. The Mavericks went 0-2 on the power play while the Gophers were 0-1 with the extra skater advantage.

The Mavericks season comes to an end with the loss to the Gophers. Minnesota finished the season with a 3-32-1 overall record and 1-26-1 in WCHA play.