Women’s Hockey: No. 1 Ohio State wins over Minnesota Duluth, advances to WCHA Final Faceoff Championship

For the No. 1 Ohio State women’s ice hockey team, turning defense into offense has been a pillar of success this season. 

That method of play carried on in the team’s 5-0 win in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Faceoff semifinal over No. 8 Minnesota Duluth at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis on Friday, lifted by senior goaltender Raygan Kirk’s 17 save, shutout performance. 

Ohio State (32-3-0, 27-2-0 WCHA) sent in two first period goals, surpassing the average goals allowed in a game of 1.06 by Bulldog (20-13-4, 15-12-2 WCHA) sophomore netminder Hailey MacLeod in just 20 minutes of play. 

“Getting shots on [MacLeod] early on was something that we talked about,” Ohio State graduate forward Jenn Gardiner said. “Getting pucks on them quickly and getting (offensive) zone time was in our game plan. Hemming them in on the forecheck and getting those opportunities was something that led to our success early.”

Freshman forward Joy Dunne tallied the first goal of the day for Ohio State at 11:03, followed by senior forward Kiara Zanon’s rebound score just 44 seconds later.

Both skaters, who are new to the Ohio State program this season, rose to the level of competition necessary for a postseason victory, Ohio State head coach Nadine Muzerall said.

“They haven’t seen [a WCHA postseason tournament], but they are individually very talented and skilled,” Muzerall said. 

The Buckeyes added two more goals in the second period, as sophomore defensemen Emma Peschel and senior forward Makenna Webster lifted Ohio State to a 4-0 lead after 40 minutes.

After an 11-7 shot on goal advantage in the first period for Ohio State, the Buckeyes outpaced the Bulldogs 19-4 in the middle frame of play.

“Continuing our relentless forecheck and stringing together a couple of shifts was something that we talked about between periods,” Gardiner said. “I think we really saw improvement throughout the game and obviously having (Raygan) Kirk in net making those saves just allows us to be confident in the offensive zone.”

Kirk, a Third Team All-WCHA member and WCHA Goaltending Champion, tallied her eighth shutout of the season and second of the postseason, giving her 19 wins on the season. 

“The girls played amazing in front of me,” Kirk said. “It’s always an honor to get the nod and I know we’ll come out flying (Saturday).”

Ohio State’s five goals smashed the average of goals allowed by Minnesota Duluth, which was 1.4 coming into Friday.

“Getting five goals on any team in this league, especially in the playoffs and everyone is playing their best, is impressive,” Muzerall said. ”The zero on the board is just as impressive.”

Senior forward Olivia Mobley notched the final goal of the day for Ohio State at 3:29 in the third quarter, giving the Buckeyes a goal from three out of four lines. 

“We have so much secondary, third and fourth scoring,” Muzerall said. “It’s hard to shut us down. It’s not one or two key players to focus on. You may shut down one player, but we have a wave of two to four coming.”

The Buckeyes tallied their 10th shutout of the season and advanced to 5-0-0 against Minnesota Duluth this season. 

Ohio State will face the winner of No. 2 Wisconsin and No. 5 Minnesota on Saturday at 2 p.m. CST, 3 p.m. EST at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. Big Ten Plus will televise.