Bemidji State at (1) Ohio State
In the first game, Sophie Jaques scored a hat trick to lead OSU to a 4-1 win. She put in a shot off the faceoff in the first, lit the lamp with .2 seconds left in the second and added a shot from the slot in the third to lead the Buckeyes. Emma Maltais added an empty-netter to finish off the Buckeyes’ scoring. Makenna Deering scored for Bemidji State in the loss. On Saturday, Sloane Matthews put Ohio State on the board two minutes into the game thanks to a set up from Kenzie Hauswirth from behind the net. That 1-0 score would hold for the next 54 minutes until Jenn Gardiner extended the lead to 2-0 with fewer than four minutes left in regulation. Claire Vekich scored a power play goal for the Beavers with under 2:30 to play, but there was not enough time left on the clock for Bemidji to complete a comeback. Ohio State advanced to the WCHA semifinals, where they’ll face UMD.
Harvard at (2) Yale
Harvard jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first thanks to goals from Kristin Della Rovere and Anne Bloomer. It took the Bulldogs a little time to reset and settle in, but by late in the second, Jordan Ray had scored twice to tie the game and it was a whole new outing for the third. Grace Lee cleaned up a rebound to make it 3-2 and Charlotte Welch’s empty-netter secured the 4-2 win. In the second game, Elle Hartje broke her own single-season assists record (which she set last season, beating a 37-year-old record) with helpers on the first and last goals of the game. Lee scored twice and Carina DiAntonio and Anna Bargman also lit the lamp to give the Bulldogs a 4-0 win. They advance to the ECAC semifinals where they’ll face Clarkson.
Princeton at (3) Colgate
After a scoreless first period on Friday, the special teams units of both squads took over. Kaitlyn O’Donohoe put Colgate up 1-0 before Emerson O’Leary tied it on the power play for Princeton. In the final minute of the second, Dara Greig scored on the power play to give Colgate a 2-1 lead heading into the third. Maggie Connors tied the game at 2 after some pretty passing and then Sarah Fillier scored the game-winner on a breakaway to give the Tigers the game one win. In the second game, Elyssa Biederman set a new program record for points by a freshman for Colgate. The Raiders got a power play in the opening minute of the game and O’Donohoe capitalized 91 seconds into the game to give them the 1-0 lead. Princeton found their footing in the second half of the frame as Issy Wunder tied it up and Connors scored with fewer than 10 seconds on the clock to send Princeton to the locker room up 2-1. Kalty Kaltounkova’s extra-attacker goal midway through the second tied the game 2-2. Wunder stole the puck in the neutral zone and scored her second of the game to give the Tigers a 3-2 lead, but Biederman responded just 10 seconds later to knot the score one more time. In the third, Danielle Serdachny cleaned up a loose puck to put Colgate ahead for good as they took a 4-3 win. In the rubber match, Sarah Fillier put Princeton up early, but Colgate replied and their defense stepped up to keep the Tigers off the board. Neena Brick’s power play goal tied it in the first and Kaltounkova’s game-winner came early in the third as Colgate took the 3-2 win and advanced to the ECAC quarterfinals to play Quinnipiac.
St. Thomas at (4) Minnesota
Grace Zumwinkle had two goals and two assists and Taylor Heise had two goals and an assist to lead Minnesota to a 7-0 win in the first game of the quarterfinal series. On Saturday, Catie Skaja had a goal and two assists, Abigail Boreen had three assists and Heise scored twice more to give Minnesota a 6-2 win. Breja Parent tied the game at one for St. Thomas early in the second, but the Gophers responded in a big way with three goals in less than two minutes to make it a 4-1 game. Maija Almich cut into the lead to start the third and make it 4-2, but once again the Gophers shut the door as Heise scored to make it 5-2 and Skaja scored in the final minute. Minnesota will face Wisconsin in the WCHA semifinals next weekend.
Merrimack at (5) Northeastern
Alina Müller had a hat trick and two assists to lead the Huskies to a 5-1 win over Merrimack. The showing helped her set a new career Hockey East Tournament record, with 30 points in the conference postseason. Müller also tied Kendall Coyne Schofield’s career record of 249 points at Northeastern. Chloe Aurard and Skylar Irving both also scored for the Huskies. Teghan Inglis was the goal scorer for Merrimack in the loss.
Minnesota State at (6) Wisconsin
On Friday, Kirsten Simms, Caroline Harvey and Sarah Wozniewicz each lit the lamp to lead the Badgers to a 3-0 win. In the second game, Sydney Langseth scored for Mankato late in the first to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead at the break. Britta Curl’s midway through the second tied it up and Laila Edwards gave Wisconsin the lead less than two minutes later. Wozniewicz extended the lead to start the third and Lacey Eden went bar down to secure the 4-1 win. The Badgers advance to play Minnesota in the WCHA semifinals.
(12) St. Cloud State at (7) Minnesota Duluth
These two teams played a hard-fought, scoreless game for more than 57 minutes on Friday before Maggie Flaherty’s shot on the power play fluttered through traffic and into the back of the net. That’s all the Bulldogs needed to take the first game 1-0. In the second game, Minnesota Duluth had a 1-0 lead after the first thanks to Naomi Rogge. But it was the second period where the Bulldogs broke it open as Kylie Hanley, Mary Kate O’Brien and Taylor Anderson each found the back of the net to make it 4-0. Taylor Lind scored a power play goal for the Huskies midway through the third, but St. Cloud could not gather more steam and Rogge added an insurance goal later in the frame to give UMD the 5-1 win. They advance to play Ohio State in the WCHA semifinals.
St. Lawrence at (8) Quinnipiac
Over the course of three games, just one goal separated these two teams. On Friday, Quinnipiac took the win despite Julia Gosling giving St. Lawrence a 1-0 lead heading into the first intermission. Alexa Hoskin tied it up for the Bobcats in the second and Sadie Peart scored the game winner in the third to make it a 2-1 victory for Quinnipiac. In the second game, Lexie Adzija took advantage of an early penalty by St. Lawrence, scoring a power play goal 40 seconds into the game. The Saints responded in the opening seconds of the second on a gorgeous pass from Shailynn Snow through traffic that Taylor Lum put in the back of the next to tie the game 1-1. Gosling gave St. Lawrence the lead on a rifle of a shot on the power play. Aly MacLeod scored three seconds after Quinnipiac pulled their goalie to make it 3-1. Adzija closed the gap to 3-2, but the Bobcats ran out of time and St. Lawrence took game two. On Sunday, Gosling continued her torrid pace, once again putting her team on the board first. That was the only tally for nearly 40 minutes before Kate Reilly took off on the penalty kill and beat Lucy Morgan to make it a 1-1 game. In overtime, Peart followed her own rebound to end the game and the series. Quinnipiac advanced to play Colgate in the ECAC semifinals.
(13) Cornell at (9) Clarkson
Game one started slow with neither team wanting to give the other the advantage, but in the second part of the first period, Clarkson scored three goals in about eight minutes to blow the contest open. Sara Swiderski, Brooke McQuigge and Nicole Gosling each lit the lamp and that pretty much put the game out of reach for Cornell. Kirstyn McQuigge extended the lead to 4-0 before Lily Delianedis was able to get one back for Cornell in the third. Gabrielle David’s late goal ensured the 5-1 win for the Golden Knights. On Saturday, it took 85 minutes to find a winner as Georgia Schiff ended the game in double overtime for Cornell. Stephanie Markowski’s second period power play goal had Clarkson up 1-0, but Kaitlin Jockims tied the game in the third. Deanna Fraser made 42 saves in the game for the Big Red and Michelle Pasiechnyk made 41. In the rubber match, after a scoreless first, Izzy Daniels put Cornell on the board early in the second. That was enough to shake Clarkson up and they responded with four unanswered goals to take the game and the series. David, Haley Winn, Anne Cherkowski and Sena Catterall each scored for the Golden Knights to secure the win. They advance to play Yale in the ECAC semifinals.
Lindenwood at (10) Penn State
On Friday, Penn State outshot Lindenwood 46-19 overall, including 22-7 in the third en route to a 4-1 win. Julie Gough, Olivia Wallin and Mya Vaslet each scored in the second to kick start the day for the Nittany Lions. Olivia Grabianowski scored late in the frame to get one back for Lindenwood, but Eleri MacKay scored in the first 65 seconds of the third to shut down any comeback and give PSU the win. In the second game of the series, Tessa Janecke earned her first career hat trick and added two assists to lead Penn State to a 7-1 win. Those points mean Janecke set new single-season records for goals, assists and points from a freshman. Penn State advances to the CHA finals, where they’ll face Mercyhurst.
New Hampshire at (11) Vermont
After a scoreless first, Rae Breton put New Hampshire on the board first, but Vermont responded minutes later with a goal from Natalie Mlynkova to tie the game 1-1. That was all the action in regulation and nearly half of the overtime period before Theresa Schafzahl ended the game to send Vermont to the Hockey East semifinals, where they’ll face Providence on Wednesday. Ava Boutilier became the UNH program leader in career minutes played in the game.
Maine at (14) Providence
Caroline Peterson and Grace Heiting scored in the second to make it 1-1 after one. Ida Kuoppala’s short-handed goal put Maine up 2-1 :33 into the second period and it looked like the Black Bears might be in control. But Providence picked things up at the end of the second and ran away with the game in the third. Ashley Clark and Delaney Couture scored in the waning minutes of the second to make it 3-2 Friars. Sara Hjalmarsson made it 4-2 in the opening minutes of the second and Peterson added a second goal late to secure the 5-2 win. Providence will play at Vermont on Wednesday for the Hockey East semifinal.
Connecticut at (15) Boston College
UConn outshot the Eagles 36-32, but BC came from behind late in the third to force overtime where Katie Pyne scored her second of the game to advance Boston College to the Hockey East semifinals. Catherine Goffredo scored in the waning minutes of the first to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead at the first intermission. Brooke Campbell tied the game just after the midway mark, but Abby Newhook responded quickly to once again give BC the lead. Jada Habisch’s goal late in the second tied it at 2 heading into the third. The teams were careful over the course of the third and it took until the final few minutes before Campbell scored on a blown play that left most of BC’s defense behind the net and Campbell alone in front with a clear path to give the Huskies their first lead of the game 3-2. From there it was the Pyne show. She netted the goal that forced overtime with under four to go and then ended the game just 2:39 into the extra frame to give Boston College the 4-3 win .
