The No. 6 University of Minneosta Duluth women's hockey team will take its shortened roster for the weekend and head to Bemidji, Minn. to face Bemidji State University in Western Collegiate Hockey Association action. The Friday-Saturday series will get underway at the Sanford Center at 6:00 p.m. Friday before concluding at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.


OLYMPIC DREAMING: Two Bulldogs chasing Olympic dreams will miss the weekend in Bemidji, Minn. to suit up for their respective national teams in Olympic qualifying -- blueliners Nina Jobst-Smith with Germany and Ida Karlsson with Sweden.

In Gavle, Sweden, Karlsson and the home team, along with a plethra of former Bulldogs, including Emma Soderberg and Paula Bergstrom, will host Netherlands, Denmark, and Norway to play for a berth in the 2026 Olympics. Over in in Bremerhaven, Germany, Jobst-Smith and Germany will welcome will Slovakia, Austria, and Hungary.

Jobst-Smith and Karlsson, if their teams qualify and they make the rosters, would become first time Olympians next winter.

SAVING UP: After back-to-back 40+ save games against the Badgers last weekend, UMD's Eve Gascon has recorded five games with 40+ saves so far this season.

Gascon has the most 40+ save games in a season so far since household name Maddie Rooney compiled seven over the 2018-19 season. Rooney, who had a 30.9 saves per game average and .930 saves percentage, did so over 31 games that year. Gascon owns a 30.0 saves per game average and a .942 saves per game average through 22 contests this season.

Gascon set a personal record of 58 stops against Ohio State University on 

Jan. 18, and currently ranks fourth in the NCAA with a saves percentage or .942.

JOBST-SMITH REACHES 50 HELPERS: Fifth-year senior Nina Jobst-Smith became just the ninth-ever Bulldog defenseman to record 50 or more assists at UMD after she logged a helper on the Bulldogs lone goal last Saturday against Wisconsin in the first period. The blueliner now stands alone in ninth place for career defenseman assists, one back from Sidney Morin in eighth (51) and three behind Jobst-Smith's former teammate Ashton Bell (53)

NO TIME FOR THIS: The Bulldogs are winless in three overtime games this season after suffering a 2-1 setback to the Badgers last Friday night. UMD, who is 0-2-1 in extra time, hasn't won an overtime game since it defeated the University of Connecticut last March in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament in Columbus, Ohio.

POWERED PLAY: UMD currently ranks eighth in the NCAA with a 25.4 power play conversion rate. 

The Bulldogs, who have recorded 17 power play goals so far, are led by Olivia Mobley's four, while Caitlin Kraemer and Tova Henderson each have rung up three.

NO SHORTHANDED PROBLEMS: 

Olivia Mobley now leads the NCAA with three shorthanded goals. Mobley is the first player since Caroline Ouellette scored three in 2004-05 to notch that many shorthanded tallies. 

As a team, UMD now has five shorthanded goals on the season, the most since the Bulldogs rang up six over the 2010-11 season and the second most in the NCAA this season.

UMD's single-season shorthanded goal record is seven, set by Maria Rooth before NCAA sanctioned play in 1999-00. In the NCAA era, two players scored four shorthanded goals in a season -- Jenny Potter (twice, 2002-03, 2003-04) and Caroline Ouellette (2003-04).

BULLDOGS RANKED SIXTH IN BOTH NATIONAL POLLS: UMD remained sixth in the USCHO.com and the USA Hockey/The Rink Live national polls.

So far this season, the Bulldogs have played 16 games against teams ranked in the top-10 in either poll. UMD is 6-9-1 in those elevated outings. 

THE SERIES: UMD owns a dominant all-time record against the Beavers, a lopsided 94-22-1 all-time in a series that began on Oct. 22, 1999.

Most recently, the Bulldogs own a 15-game winning streak against BUS that dates back to 2021 -- and it includes nine shutouts. The last time UMD lost to the BSU was on the road on Jan. 222, 2021, a 1-0 Beaver upset.

Top UMD Scorers vs Bemidji State

Clara Van Wieren 

GP=16 G=6 A=12 P=18

Nina Jobst-Smith GP=16 G=2 A=10 P=12

Hanna Baskin GP=13 G=1 A=8 P=9

Jenna Lawry GP=13 G=2 A=6 P=8

Mary Kate O'Brien GP=12 G=3 A=5 P=8

Eve Gason GP=3, 3-0-0

59 saves on 60 shots.

Tindra Holm 1-0, 2-0 shutout on 11/23/24

UMD vs Bemidji State 

Last 10 games (10-0-0)

Nov. 23, 2024 2-0 Win Home

Nov. 22, 2024 8-1 Win Home

Jan. 13, 2024 7-0 Win Home

Jan. 12, 2024 2-0 Win Home

Oct. 29, 2023 6-0 Win Away

Oct. 28, 2023 2-1 Win Away

Feb. 18, 2023 5-1 Win Away

Feb.17, 2023 6-0 Win Away

Jan. 14, 2023 5-0 Win Home

Jan. 13, 2023 8-1 Win Home

The two sides last met on Nov. 23-24 at AMSOIL, an 8-1 and 2-0 win for the Bulldogs.

In game one, Olivia Wallin scored a hat trick for the 100th point of her career, and the Bulldogs rolled over BSU. Wallin's outstanding day was the highlight of an offensive day for UMD that saw six players besides Wallin notch two points, including Tova Henderson, who scored twice and both Mary Kate O'Brien and Olivia Mobley, who each added a goal and an assist. 

The Bulldogs scored two goals in the first and second period before exploding for four in the third period, while Wallin landed a goal in each frame.

UMD outshot the Beavers 45-21 in the skate, and Eve Gascon got the win in between the pipes with 20 saves.

In game two, Henderson, after netting two in Friday's contest, one-timed in the first period for the 1-0 lead.

 The Bulldogs doubled that goal count midway through the second period when Olivia Mobley scored at 8:18 -- and also handed Wallin her whopping fifth point on the weekend (3g, 2a), and after 40 minutes of play, UMD was up on the Beavers 2-0.

 From there, the Bulldogs still outshot BSU 12-4 in the third period, and the defense kept any serious threats to the second shutout of Tindra Holm's UMD career at bay. Holm made all 12 saves on shots she faced, and the Bulldogs outshot BSU 39-12 in the contest, and UMD was 1-of-1 on the lone power play attempt it had on the weekend. 

EXTRA NOTES ON THE BULLDOGS AND BEAVERS: Graduate forward Clara Van Wieren has more points than career games played against BSU -- 16 games on 18 points with six goals and 12 assists. Van Wieren is averaging a whopping 1.12 ppg.

--Olivia Wallin, who has only played BSU six times over her UMD collegiate career, is averaging 1.16 ppg on six games, which includes four goals.

--Team high assists on the season with 15 and points with 23 came in their game against BSU on Nov. 22.

LAST TIME OUT: UMD came close, but couldn't snap out of its six-game losing streak last weekend and was swept in two 2-1 games by the top-ranked University of Wisconsin.

On Friday night, UMD fell with just 37 seconds left in overtime. The Bulldogs third line – who was a problem for the Badgers all night – opened the game's scoring at 7:48 of the first period -- Grace Sadura's second of the season. 

Wisconsin's Marianne Picard equalized off a screen of Gascon at the 13:29 mark to knot the game at 1-1, a score that would hold for the following 46:31 minutes of regulation.

Needing overtime to settle their stalemate, that 1-1 score held until 4:23 of the five minute, 3-on-3 additional time when Kirsten Simms finally found a way past Gascon. Gascon had 40 saves in the game, and the Badgers outshot the Bulldogs 42-28, including 5-0 in the overtime. 

Saturday afternoon, UMD never trailed the entire series until the final 8:16 of the third period. Just like the night before, the Bulldogs showed no fear of the nation's top team, and after a flurry of action late in the first period, UMD finally broke through for a 1-0 lead. It came off a quick release rip from Nina Jobst-Smith from the right point, and Olivia Mobley was there to bury the rebound for her team-leading 14th goal of the season at 17:30. 

The Bulldogs had ample chances to add to that lead, including a 1-on-1 play from Caitin Kraemer 6:37 into the second that beat Ava McNaughton but not the inside of the post. The Bulldogs would have another post in the third period and two missed breakaway attempts in the ensuing game before Wisconsin's Laila Edwards finally found a way past Eve Gascon at 6:14 of the third period. Then, in cruel fashion, the Badgers Sarah Wozniewicz struck at 11:44 to take their first regular time lead of the series – one they would never relinquished.

After both teams were an even 15 shots on goal in the opening frame, the Badgers outshot the Bulldogs 33-12 in the final 40 minutes, and 48-27 in the game. Eight of Wisconsin's shot came off their power plays, while UMD was never awarded a power play in the contest. Gascon was again spectacular in between the pipes for the Bulldogs with 46 saves.

NOTES FROM THE WISCONSIN SERIES:  UMD is now 37-66-15 all-time against the Badgers, including winless in their past six games. The Bulldogs end the regular season against UW 0-4.

--UMD held Wisconsin to just 2.00 goals a game over the weekend, far below the 5.60 goals per games average they came into the weekend with.

--The Bulldogs stayed out of the box – it tied their second lowest series penalty count of the season and lowest series since Nov. 22-23 against the Beavers.

--UMD six-game losing streak is its longest winless streak since the 2018-19 season when the Bulldogs went 0-5-1 from Oct. 27- Dec. 7, 2018. It's the longest losing streak since the Bulldogs dropped six-straight the season before that -- 2017-18. That rough streak went from Oct. 5- 21, 2017