(UW ATHLETICS) MADISON – A two-goal performance from Lacey Eden and six total goals helped the Wisconsin women’s hockey team to a 6-0 victory and series sweep of the Bemidji State Beavers at LaBahn Arena on Friday.
Five different Badgers (10-0-0, 6-0-0 WCHA) found the back of the Beavers’ (1-8-1, 0-6-0 WCHA) net Friday. Eden scored two goals Friday, while Kelly Gorbatenko, Cassie Hall and Kirsten Simms had one goal and two helpers each. Laila Edwards also scored a goal of her own.
The Badgers took a 1-0 lead about halfway through the first period. Eden took a pass from Katie Kotlowski and sent it net-bound, where it ricocheted off a Bemidji State defender and into the net.
With two minutes to play in the first period, the Badgers added another. Eden sent a pass to Edwards who sent a pass across the slot that deflected past the Beaver netminder and into the back of the net.
Wisconsin put together four goals in the second period. Eden notched her second goal of the night, while Simms, Hall and Gorbatenko scored one each in the second period.
Quinn Kuntz replaced Ava McNaughton in between the posts for the Badgers in the third period, stopping all four shots she encountered. McNaughton saved all eight shots she faced through two periods. The Badgers closed out the game with a 6-0 victory.
Notes of the Game
- Wisconsin has over 30 shots in eight of their 10 games, and Friday marks the fourth game with 50 or more shots.
- The Badgers extended their winning streak against the Beavers to 15 games.
- The season-opening 10-game win streak is Wisconsin’s best since the 2021-22 season, when they won 12 straight. This also marks the sixth time that UW has started a season with a 10-game winning streak.
- UW has outscored its opponents 65-9 through 10 games this season.
Straight from the Rink
Head coach Mark Johnson
On Laila Edwards playing defense tonight:
“She’s excited, I told her to move to other end bench and she’s all fired up”
On looking toward some tough matchups:
“We’re getting ready for St. Cloud (State), it will present some challenges because of the (Olympic) ice sheet and the structure of how they play. So you know it’s good. We’re in a good position.”
Senior Lacey Eden
On the second game of the series:
“I think the message after yesterday’s game was, we had a really good game yesterday, and I think we could have been a little bit crisper. So we watched some film on that, found some areas that we could improve, and kind of put that to work immediately.”
On the deflection:
“I knew Laila (Edwards) was gonna be back door, so that’s kind of what I was going for, and I think if it didn’t hit that girl. Leila would have put it in anyways.”
On playing with the team:
“Everybody’s trusted, everybody’s valued, and we have a lot of amazing players up and down the lineup who can put the puck in the net, too. It’s been pretty easy to play with this team so far.”
Up Next: Wisconsin will hit the road for a series at St. Cloud State next Friday and Saturday. Puck drop on Friday is set for 3 p.m. while Saturday’s series finale begins at 1 p.m.
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