DULUTH — Sixth-ranked Minnesota Duluth had the No. 1 ranked team in the country on the ropes Friday, but still couldn’t avoid a fifth-straight defeat.
Wisconsin junior wing Kirsten Simms scored a 3-on-3 goal with 37 seconds remaining in overtime to give the top-ranked and league-leading Badgers a 2-1 victory over the Bulldogs in WCHA play at Amsoil Arena.
Both of the regulation goals came in the first period, with sophomore wing Grace Sadura giving UMD a 1-0 lead before Badgers redshirt junior center Marianne Picard tied the game.
Sophomore goaltender Eve Gascon made 40 saves for the Bulldogs while Wisconsin sophomore goalie Ava McNaughton stopped 27 shots.
“Our whole team was playing to the game plan,” Sadura said. “We were disciplined. We were playing as a unit. I think we had a really good game. Just a disappointing end there.”
Highlights
SADURA STRIKES FIRST! pic.twitter.com/2nZczlxDJf
— UMD Women's Hockey (@UMDWHockey) February 1, 2025
Sadura led the Bulldogs' offensive charge Friday. She finished with six shots on goal — second most for her in a game this season — and the goal that was credited to her wasn’t anywhere close to being her best scoring chance. Sadura was setting a screen in front of McNaughton and a shot by junior defenseman Brenna Fuhrman deflected off Sadura and in.
Sadura and her linemates — senior center Jenna Lawry and freshman wing Zoey Krock — combined for eight shots on goal and at least half of those were solid scoring chances.
“It was just an aggressive forecheck,” Sadura said of her line. “We were also very smart with our forecheck. We weren’t going all three hard. We were playing it the right way. We were playing disciplined in all three zones and that allowed us to have those offensive chances.”
The Bulldogs are the first team to hold Wisconsin to a single goal in regulation. Two total goals ties a season-low for Wisconsin, which is now 2-1-1 when held to two goals. The Badgers came to Duluth this weekend averaging 5.6 goals per game with a 4.46 goals per game scoring margin. Both of those stats lead the country.
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“I’m so proud of our girls tonight. We really came to play,” UMD coach Laura Schuler said. “They really bought into our systems in terms of what we wanted to do. I thought we had a lot of Grade-A chances.
“If we put maybe one more of those opportunities away, maybe it’s a different outcome. I’m so proud of our players. I feel like every single player played outstanding tonight.”
UMD was outshot 5-0 in overtime as it spent most of the 3-on-3 period defending in its own zone. The Bulldogs are just the third team to take Wisconsin to overtime, with St. Cloud State doing so Sunday in Madison. Ohio State — the only team to beat Wisconsin this season — also took the Badgers to OT in an outdoor game at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Both games ended in ties with Wisconsin losing the shootout.
The Bulldogs are winless in overtime this year at 0-2-2. UMD has lost back-to-back games in OT after falling to St. Thomas last Friday 4-3 in Mendota Heights. UMD is 2-0 in shootouts.
The Bulldogs only had nine forwards Friday with sophomore wing Payton Holloway out of the lineup. Holloway, of Tomah, is one of two Wisconsin natives on the roster along with freshman defenseman Kamdyn Davis of Beloit. Schuler said Holloway is day-to-day.
Up next
The Bulldogs are set to host Wisconsin one more time at 3 p.m. Saturday at Amsoil Arena. UMD is then on the road for two of the final three weekends of the regular season, starting with a trip to Bemidji on Feb. 7-8.
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Box score
Wisconsin 1-0-0-1—2
Minnesota Duluth 1-0-0-0—1
First period
1. UMD, Grace Sadura (Brenna Fuhrman, Jenna Lawry), 7:48
2. UW, Marianne Picard (Kelly Gorbatenko, Sarah Wozniewicz), 13:29
Second period
No scoring
Third period
No scoring
Overtime
3. UW, Kirsten Simms (Casey O’Brien), 4:23
Saves — Ava McNaughton, UW, 27; Eve Gascon, UMD, 40.
Power play — UW 0-1; UMD 0-3. Penalties — UW 3-6; UMD 1-2.
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