The eighth-seeded University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team came heartbreakingly close to the NCAA title Sunday afternoon, but in the end, they earned the right to demand something they undoubtedly haven't gotten enough of all season – respect.
Top-seeded Ohio State University held off the Bulldogs 3-2 to capture the Buckeyes first-ever NCAA title at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pa in the 2022 NCAA Frozen Four Championship. The title game was the first for UMD since 2010, who was looking for its first title in 12 seasons after making back-to-back Frozen Four appearances for the first time in over a decade.
That title was never out of reach for the Bulldogs, who clawed back twice to draw even with OSU in the second and third period. After a scoreless opening frame, OSU took advantage of the game's lone power play at 4:10 of the second period. Bulldog netminder Emma Soderberg attempted to clear the puck, but Paetyn Levis was there to put the Buckeyes up 1-0. UMD responded midway through the period, and Taylor Anderson's effort helped get the puck to senior defenseman Kailee Skinner at the OSU point. Skinner's shot was tipped down and in by Naomi Rogge, whose effort notched her second goal of the Frozen Four and equalized 1-1 at 12:42 of the second period.
The Buckeyes retook the lead on a wild sequence just 24 seconds into the final period, again getting behind Soderberg who was caught outside the crease. But again, UMD counterpunched, this time in the form of Élizabeth Giguère, who added to her extensive Frozen Four resume on her fifth-ever career goal in the tournament 1:23 later. From the boards, Anna Klein found Giguère skating across the top of the circle, and the fifth-year senior casually sniped the puck over OSU goaltender Amanda Thiele's left shoulder to knot the game back up at 2-2.
OSU took the game's final lead at 13:20, after Kenzie Hauswirth's shot from the right point cleared UMD's crease but deflected off a defenseman's skate for the eventual game-winner, the final costly bounce for the Bulldogs in the contest.
Soderberg had 36 saves in the game to bring her total to 82 in the Frozen Four, and the senior goaltender had a total of 146 in four games in the NCAA Tournament – a new single tournament record. Soderberg, along with Rogge, were both named to the Frozen Four All-Tournament Team, the 21st and 22nd Bulldogs selected for the honor in program history.
"I think we are trying to get our team recognized as it should be," said Rogge after the game. "We came out and played the top team in the nation to a 3-2 game when it was close on a couple crappy bounces in our opinion. I think we should be right up there with them and I think if anything we should be respected in that sense as well."
After an NCAA Tournament run that witnessed the Bulldogs knock out the third and second seeded teams, and battle fiercely with the first seed in the title game, there's really no argument to whether or not UMD has earned a right to college women's hockey respect.
They have it.
