The Ohio State women's ice hockey team crowds around the net before the game. The Buckeyes, ranked No. 1 in the nation, will play No. 8 Minnesota Duluth in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals on Saturday.Credit: Aiden Ridgway | Lantern Photographer
The Ohio State women's ice hockey team is aiming for its fourth straight Frozen Four appearance on Saturday.
The No. 1 Buckeyes (32-4-0, 26-2-0 WCHA) will face the No. 8 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs (21-13-4, 15-11-2) in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. Lost, against WCHA). Saturday at the Ohio State Ice Rink.
Ohio State remains undefeated in five games against Minnesota Duluth this season, most recently winning 5-0 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association tournament semifinals on March 8.
Before the WCHA semifinals, senior goaltender Raegan Kirk said the Bulldogs' discipline makes them a challenging opponent.
“They're like us,” Kirk said. “Like us, they have depth on the team as well. Not a lot of individual players, they have really strong goaltending, they are very strong in the defensive zone and as a unit I’ll play.”
The Bulldogs advanced to the quarterfinals with a 1-0 overtime victory over the No. 9 University Huskies on Thursday at the Ohio State Ice Rink. Graduate forward Manon McMahon scored the winning goal and freshman goaltender Eve Gascón made 33 saves in the first-round win.
Ohio State earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament with the best overall record in the nation. The Buckeyes won the WCHA regular season championship, but lost 6-3 to No. 2 Wisconsin in the conference tournament finals on March 9.
Kirk has started all four of Ohio State's postseason games this year. He appeared in three regular-season games against Minnesota-Duluth, totaling 51 saves without allowing a run.
Senior goaltender Amanda Thiele has started twice this season against Minnesota-Duluth, giving up two runs on Oct. 13, 2023, and pitching a shutout on Jan. 20.
Both Minnesota Duluth goaltenders earned WCHA postseason honors. Gascón was a Rookie of the Year finalist, and sophomore Haley McLeod was a Goaltender of the Year finalist and a member of the All-WCHA Second Team.
Ohio State has seven players on the All-WCHA First, Second, Third and Rookie teams, including Rookie of the Year Joy Dunn.
Ohio State is undefeated with four NCAA Tournament quarterfinal appearances. The last time the Buckeyes hosted the NCAA quarterfinals, they defeated Quinnipiac 5-2 on March 11, 2023.
The last time Ohio State and Minnesota Duluth met in the NCAA Tournament, the Buckeyes won 3-2 for the national championship on March 20, 2022.
The quarterfinal game between Ohio State and Minnesota Duluth will be played Saturday at 4 p.m. and will be streamed live on Big Ten Plus.
