DULUTH — The fourth-ranked Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team suffered a fourth consecutive loss Friday, falling 4-3 in overtime to unranked St. Thomas in WCHA play at St. Thomas Arena in Mendota Heights.
The Bulldogs (15-9-2 overall, 10-8-2 WCHA) entered the weekend 9-0 when leading after two periods, but blew a lead in the third period for the second game in a row. UMD led the Tommies 2-1 in their series opener on Thursday in Mendota Heights before falling 3-2 in regulation.
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On Friday the Bulldogs led 3-2 going into the third, where the Tommies (7-17-2, 4-15-1) got a game-tying goal from senior forward Lauren Stenslie with 11:30 left in the game. She then assisted sophomore forward Ella Boerger on the game-winning 3-on-3 goal 3:05 into OT.
For the second game in a row, all three of the Bulldogs' goals came in the second period. Redshirt junior forward Mary Kate O’Brien, fifth-year senior center Clara Van Wieren and junior wing Danielle Burgen on the power play rallied UMD from a 2-0 deficit.
Sophomore forward Rylee Bartz — who scored two goals Thursday, including the game-winner — and freshman forward Chloe Boreen scored the Tommies' first two goals Friday.
Bulldogs sophomore goaltender Eve Gascon — who had surrendered two or fewer goals in her last nine outings before this week — made 19 saves on 23 shots. Coming off one 102-save series a week ago against Ohio State, Friday was Gascon’s fourth start — and the Bulldogs fourth game — in a span of eight days.
Tommies freshman goaltender Dani Storm made 40 saves, including three in OT.
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The Bulldogs are now 13-2-1 all time against St. Thomas, which not only got its first two wins ever over UMD this week, but its first two wins over a team ranked in the top five.
UMD remained sixth in the Pairwise rankings as of Friday evening, but that could change with games scheduled for Saturday and Sunday across NCAA Division I hockey. UMD began the week at No. 5 and was fourth nine days ago.
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UMD is still comfortably fourth in the WCHA, despite getting a single point in league play the last two weeks. The Bulldogs are 11 points up on St. Cloud State, which is at Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday. UMD, which was second in the WCHA nine days ago, is now four points back of third-place Ohio State and seven behind second-place Minnesota with both the Buckeyes and Gophers able to extend that lead with games on Saturday.
Van Wieren’s goal was the 50th of her career. She joins fifth-year transfer forwards and linemates Olivia Wallin and Olivia Mobley with 50 career goals, though all of hers have come as a Bulldog.
Hanna Baskin made a surprise return to the lineup Friday. The senior defenseman and alternate captain had been ruled out for the series after getting checked from behind into the end wall against Ohio State last Saturday. Baskin didn’t play Thursday.
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