Less than 24 hours after giving the University of Minnesota Duluth defense all it could handle, the University of Minnesota continued to flex its offensive muscle on Saturday. The third-ranked Gophers threw 50 shots on goal and converted on their lone power-play opportunity to rack up a 6-2 Western Collegiate Hockey Association win at AMSOIL Arena.
 
The visitors wasted no time snatching the momentum, going up 1-0 on an even-strength tally at the 1:28 mark. Following a 3-for-3 effort on the power-play Friday night, Minnesota added another with the player advantage to go up 2-0 with 5:31 remaining in the first period. UMD battled back just 27 seconds later on senior center Michela Cava's team-leading 17^th goal of the year (with helpers from junior Ashleigh Brykaliuk and Katherine McGovern).
 
The Bulldogs kept it close for the majority of the second period, staying in a one-goal contest until the Gophers stretched their lead to 3-1 with 7:20 to spare before the intermission. Minnesota would strike twice more in the next 4:30, all but putting the game out of reach at 5-1 heading into the final frame. With Minnesota holding a 6-1 lead in the closing seconds, McGovern buried her second goal in as many outings to give the Scottsdale, Ariz., native a four-point weekend.

"Once they got that third one, I think they got another one pretty quickly after that and we hung our heads a little bit, started feeling bad for ourselves," UMD head coach Maura Crowell said. "When we talk about going into games like this and going down the stretch it's all about us and building on what we need to focus on – not necessarily the scoreboard ... I still think we can work harder, play a little better and stay focused when the going gets tough."
 
Making their last collegiate home appearances, Bulldog senior goaltenders Kayla Black (32 saves) and Karissa Grapp (12) combined to make 44 stops on Senior Day. Minnesota goaltender Amanda Leveille turned aside 14 of 16 attempts in the winning effort. The Gophers (27-3-1 overall and 22-3-1 in the WCHA) are now on a 12-game unbeaten streak.
 
UMD (12-19-1; 9-16-1) will finish off the regular season next weekend, when the Bulldogs hit the road for a two-game conference set with St. Cloud State University. That series -- which amounts to a battle for fifth place in the WCHA standings -- will get under way on Friday.

"We're neck-and-neck for fifth place so that's a big series for us, and I think very winnable games. We had good success against them here. That will really set the tempo for the playoffs," Crowell said. 

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