Nothing is more important at this point in the season than piling up wins, and the No. 8 University of Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team did just that Saturday afternoon in St. Cloud, Minn.

With more playoff pressure on the Bulldogs than any other team in the nation, UMD earned not only a weekend sweep but also a season sweep of St. Cloud State University with a 2-1 win at the National Hockey Center.  The triumph bumps the Bulldogs to 14-11-1 overall and 11-10-1 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association but more significantly, also boosts UMD to No. 9 in the all-important PairWise rankings.

Offensive responsibility has been typically shared between any number of Bulldog players throughout the season, and Saturday’s skate was no different.  Junior blueliner Jessica Wong put UMD up 1-0 with a mere 41 seconds remaining in the opening period with an unassisted shorthanded goal, her ninth tally of the year.

The Bulldogs doubled up the Husky deficit at the 14:01 mark of the second period on a goal from junior forward Vanessa Thibault.  Thibault’s seventh strike of the year was assisted from sophomore Jamie Kenyon and Wong. 

St. Cloud scored on a power-play tally with 46 seconds left in the second period, but Alex Nelson’s goal was the closest the Huskies would come.  UMD shelled SCSU 45-22, including 24 shots in the second period alone with just six from the Huskies.

Senior goaltender Lana Steck got her first win of the season, making 21 stops for the Bulldogs and is now 4-0-0 over her UMD career between the pipes.  Rookie netminder Julie Friend came up big for SCSU, making 43 saves in the skate.  The Bulldogs went 0-of-6 on the power-play, while the Huskies went 1-of-5.  St. Cloud was called for nine penalties worth 29 minutes in the contest.

UMD will host Ohio State University next weekend at AMSOIL Arena, a series that has playoff implications for both squads.  The Buckeyes are clawing at the PairWise race with a win on Friday night over the No. 5 University of North Dakota.  Both Friday and Saturday night games are set for 7:07 p.m. starts.