MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — No. 12 Minnesota State women's hockey battled No. 3 Minnesota on the road Friday night, falling 4–3 at Ridder Arena.

The Golden Gophers scored twice late in the first period, but the Mavericks answered before the break. Makayla Moran cut the deficit to 2-1 at 18:42, sparking momentum heading into the second.

Minnesota State took control early in the second period. Ava Guillemette tied the game at 1:33 of the period with assists from Moran and Zoe Lopez, then gave the Mavericks a 3–2 lead at 3:52 on as Guillemette scored second goal of the night, assisted by Lopez and Moran.

Minnesota responded with an even-strength goal and later capitalized on the power play to regain the lead late in the second. Despite continued pressure from the Mavericks in the third period, Minnesota State was unable to find the equalizer.

"I am proud of the bounce back effort of our group. We played a much more consistent game and our brand of hockey. It was great to see our third line (Guillemette, Moran and Lopez) continue to generate offense with their pace, physicality and willingness to get to the net." Said head coach Shari Dickerman.

Hailey Hansen made 34 saves in goal for the Mavericks, who finished with 34 shots on net.

Minnesota State (11-10-1, 5-10-1 WCHA) returns to action next weekend as they host Ohio State at the Mayo Clinic HSEC on Friday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 3 p.m.