Former No. 1 ranked Wisconsin returned to the top of the USA Hockey/Rink Live Women's College Hockey Poll in Week 23, replacing Ohio State.
The Badgers defeated the Buckeyes 6-3 in the WCHA finals in Minneapolis last Saturday.
Both teams are the only teams to hold the No. 1 spot this season, with the Buckeyes holding the No. 1 spot in the polls since Week 11.
The ECAC has seven teams in the rankings, while the WCHA has five, the Hockey East has two, and the CHA has one.
Team, Points, Last Week, Record, Voting Week Number
1. University of Wisconsin, 277 (11), 2, 33-5-0, 23
2. Ohio State University, 274 (8), 1, 32-4-0, 23
3. Colgate University, 246, 4, 31-6-1, 23
4. Clarkson University, 226, 3, 32-4-2, 23
5. University of Minnesota, 210, 5, 27-9-2, 23
6. Cornell University, 187, 6, 24-7-1, 23
7. St. Lawrence University, 167, 7, 27-10-0, 20
8. University of Minnesota Duluth, 155, 8, 20-13-4, 23
9. University of Connecticut, 126, 10, 25-7-5, 23
10. Quinnipiac University, 116, 9, 25-11-1, 23
11. St. Cloud State University, 97, 11, 17-17-2, 23
12. Princeton University, 62, 12, 14-12-6, 21
13. Penn State, 53, T-14, 22-12-3, 13
14. Northeastern University, 46, 13, 25-11-3, 16
15. Yale University, 24, T-14, 16-15-1, 23
Also accepting votes: Stonehill College, 6; Minnesota State University, 5; Boston College, 3.
Ohio State is no longer at the top of the polls after nearly 12 weeks of dominance. Wisconsin took first place by just three points in mid-March, when the Badgers defeated the Buckeyes by a final score of 6-3 in the WCHA Finals Faceoff title game. Wisconsin dominated Saturday afternoon's game, with the Badgers leading 6-1 at one point in the third period, and special teams playing a key role in the victory as Wisconsin scored two goals on the power play and one short-handed. Ta.
The Badgers currently have two of the nation's leading scorers in Kirsten Sims (71 points) and Casey O'Brien (69 points), and will enter the NCAA Regionals as the No. 2 seed. Wisconsin will play the winner of St. Lawrence and Penn State in the national quarterfinals Saturday afternoon for a chance to earn a ticket to the 2024 women's Frozen 4.
Colgate and Clarkson also swapped positions over the weekend, as the Raiders moved into third place and the Golden Knights dropped to fourth. In the ECAC championship match, goaltender Cale Osborne scored 30 points and Colgate defeated Clarkson 3-0. Completely preserved. UW and Quinnipiac also traded spots, with the Huskies clinching an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament with a 1-0 overtime win over Northeastern University in the Hockey East title game, but Quinnipiac lost in the ECAC quarterfinal series. They lost to Cornell University in a best-of-three game.
Penn State moved up to No. 13 after winning the CHA conference and earning an automatic bid to the NCAA regional tournament with a 1-0 win over Mercyhurst. Northeastern University fell to 14th place after losing to University College in the aforementioned Hockey East Finals, and Yale University dropped one spot after being swept by St. Lawrence in the ECAC quarterfinals.
Stonehill is currently receiving votes for winning the NEWHA Championship and qualifying for the NCAA Regionals, with Minnesota State University and Boston College continuing to receive votes as well.
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