The No. 7/8 University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team heads south to Mankato, Minn. this weekend to face Western Collegiate Hockey Association foe Minnesota State University, Mankato in a Friday-Saturday series. The puck will drop in Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center at 3:00 p.m. on Friday and 2:00 p.m. Saturday.



PARTY LIKE IT'S 1999: It's been exactly 25 years since the UMD women's hockey program hit the ice for its first NCAA season at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center. The Bulldog program will celebrate the season (along with the WCHA's 25th Anniversary season) all year long, highlighted by a 25th Anniversary Team that will be unveiled each week throughout the regular season.

As a program, UMD has compiled 538 wins overall, along with 396 WCHA wins. While the Bulldogs are five-time NCAA champions, they have also skated in seven NCAA title tilts -- including just two seasons ago (2021). As a program, UMD, which has made the NCAA Tournament the past three seasons, has punched its postseason ticket 14 times, and has made eight NCAA Frozen Four appearances -- including two over the past three seasons. 

MCMAHON STREAKS ON: Graduate senior Mannon McMahon has now played the fourth most consecutive games in program history. 

The forward has skated in 138 straight-games to date, putting her behind Sidney Morin in third with 147 games, Ashton Bell at No. 2 with 164, and Anna Klein, who owns a program-best 165 consecutive games played. 

UMD's all-time games played record was set last season by Naomi Rogge, and stands at 168 games. McMahon is currently 15 games away from cracking into the top-10 games played of all-time.

THE SERIES: UMD is 85-9-10 all-time against the Mavericks and is 9-2-1 in the last 12 head-to-head action between the teams. Over the past ten seasons, the Bulldogs are a commanding 35-2-6, and ran up a 15 game winning streak against the Mavericks from Oct. 25, 2013 through Dec. 9, 2016. In the last decade, UMD has averaged 3.64 goals a game against MSU. and has posted shutouts 11 times. The Bulldogs are also an impressive 27-3-6 against MSU over the Maura Crowell era.

Two current players recorded two points against the Mavericks in four games last season -- junior forward Gabby Krause (2g) and graduate senior forward Mannon McMahon (1g, 1a). 

In all, the Bulldogs only scored eight goals against MSU a season ago, while allowing just four. Two games were shutouts by UMD. The Bulldogs heavily outshot the Mavericks in those four games however 155-63. UMD averaged 38.7 shots on goal a game, while MSU  managed just 15.7. MSU did not score a power play goal against UMD in five attempts in 2022-23.

UMD vs. Minnesota State - 85-9-10 All-Time

(Last 12 games)

Feb. 4, 2023 0-0 Tie OT SW

Feb. 3, 2023 4-3 Win OT Away

Oct. 8, 2022 2-0 Win Home

Oct. 7, 2022 2-1 Win OT Home

Feb. 27, 2022 3-2 Win Home*

Feb. 26, 2022 1-3 Loss Home*

Feb. 25, 2022 5-4 Win Home*

Jan. 29, 2022 5-3 Win Home

Jan. 28, 2022 4-2 Win Home

Oct. 2, 2021 2-4 Loss Away

Oct. 1, 2021 7-0 Win Away

Feb. 21, 2021 4-3 Win 

*WCHA Quarterfinals

UMD-MSU HIGHLIGHT: The Mavericks are one of three teams UMD has piled up 80 or more wins against over program history with 85. Currently, the Bulldogs have a program-best 88 wins against Bemidji State, and the third most against St. Cloud State at 81.

UMD-MSU EXTRA: The UMD-MSU 0-0 tie last season in their final meeting on Feb. 4 was the first regular season 0-0 tie by a Bulldog side since Feb, 6, 2015 at the University of Wisconsin. It also marked just the second time in the past two seasons UMD was held scoreless over the regular season.

LAST TIME OUT: UMD was swept by No. 2 Ohio State University at AMSOIL Arena by scores of 5-2 and 2-0 last weekend in its opening WCHA action.

In Friday's 5-2 setback, for a third-straight game, the Bulldogs opened up the game's scoring, and this time, senior forward Katie Davis did the honors. Davis, along with Olivia Wallin both got to a puck on net off a shot from the point from rookie blueliner Ida Karlsson, and Davis' stick knocked it through OSU goaltender Amanda Thiele first at 3:07 for the opening lead.

OSU struck back with a pair of goals from Hadley Hartmetz 1:32 apart. Hartmetz's goals, which included a power play tally, put the Buckeyes out front 2-1, a lead OSU took into the first intermission.

 That OSU lead extended to 3-1 on a shorthanded goal by Jenna Buglioni 5:30 into the second period, but UMD again pulled within one on graduate senior forward Reece Hunt's second goal in as many games. Hunt took an errant puck from Thiele in the slot and buried it at 12:36 to make it a 3-2 game, a score that would hold up after 40 minutes of action.

 The lone two goals of the third period came from OSU, however, one at 3:57 and then an empty-netter with just 1:06 left to tilt game one of the series to the Buckeyes.

Rookie goaltender Ève Gascon, making just her second career start for the Bulldogs, had 31 saves in net, while Thiele had just 10 for OSU. The Buckeyes were 1-of-2 on their power play, while UMD was held scoreless in six attempts. OSU outshot UMD 36-12 in the game.

In Saturday's 2-0 loss, power plays were once again the deciding factor.

 Just as the day before, the Buckeyes were able to use two power plays to get ahead of the Bulldogs.  A five-minute contact to the head penalty called on UMD at 17:57 of the first period finally resulted in an OSU breakthrough on Gascon by Buckeye Hannah Bilka at 1:10 of the second period. Just 1:41 later, OSU netted its fourth power play of the series and second of the game to take a 2-0 lead in the game.

A late push by the Bulldogs in the third period tested the Buckeyes, but goaltender Raygan Kirk stopped all 16 shots on goals she faced. Gascon made 40 saves in her third UMD start.

NOTES FROM THE OSU SERIES: UMD is now 74-29-9 all-time against the Buckeyes. Over the last 20 games at AMSOIL, the Bulldogs are 14-6-2 against OSU.

--Last Friday's three goal win by the Buckeyes broke a six-game streak UMD and OSU had of games decided by just a single goal.

--While UMD is still averaging three goals a game through four games, the Bulldogs were held to just two goals total last weekend.

--The Buckeyes shutout at AMSOIL was the first by an opponent since the OSU did it almost two years to the day -- on Oct. 15, 2021, a 3-0 loss for UMD.

--It also marked the first time the Bulldogs had been swept at home in more than a season -- until last weekend, UMD had not been swept at AMSOIL since Minnesota did it on Jan. 27-28, 2022.

CENTURY SKATE CLUB: Both Clara Van Wieren and Nina Jobst-Smith skated in their 100th game with UMD last Saturday. They are tied for second on the current roster -- Mannon McMahon has now played in 138 games as a Bulldog.

ON THE HUNT: UMD graduate and transfer Reece Hunt has made an immediate impact with the Bulldogs in her first four games. Hunt has scored in two of her last three games and has logged at least a point in three of the four first games of the season. Currently with two goals and three assists, Hunt is tied for the points lead among all UMD players. Last season with BSU,Hunt posted seven goals and 13 assists for 20 points in 34 games.