(UW ATHLETICS) ST. CLOUD, MINN – The No. 3 Wisconsin women’s hockey team (8-2-0, 4-2-0 WCHA) completed the sweep of the No. 9/8 St. Cloud State Huskies (8-4-0, 6-2-0 WCHA) with a 7-2 victory at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center on Saturday afternoon.
Freshman Nela Lopušanová had six points from five goals and one assist to lead the Badgers to their second WCHA sweep.
Lopušanová started the scoring off for the Badgers with a backdoor goal assisted by Hall and Pieckenhagen.
Just over three minutes later, Lopušanová snatched the puck away from a Husky to tally her second goal of the game, this time unassisted.
Hall caught the goal bug to make it 3-0 with Charlotte Pickenhagen earning the assist.
Lopušanová then earned her first NCAA career hat trick to close out the first period of play off a pass from freshman Emma Cerruti.
The Huskies found the back of the net early in the second period, making it a three-goal game.
To open the third period, St. Cloud tallied another to make it 4-2.
Lopušanová found her fourth goal of the game off of Wisconsin’s fifth goal. The freshman found the puck from Hall to add an extra insurance goal for the Badgers.
With 5:39 remaining in the game, Finley McCarthy scored a short handed goal, with Pieckenhagen on the assist, making it 6-2.
While still on the penalty kill, Lopušanová scored her fifth goal, tying the Wisconsin record for most goals in a game with Hilary Knight (Sept. 27, 2008).
Notes of the Game:
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Scoring an impressive five goals, Lopušanová became the second Badger in school history to do so. She also marks just the second NCAA women’s ice hockey freshman to light the lamp five times since Katie Guay tallied six for Brown (Jan. 11, 2002).
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Lopušanová’s single-period hat trick marked the sixth time in school history that a UW player has scored three goals in a single period. McKayla Zilisch was the last Badger to do so on Nov. 30, 2025, against Stonehill.
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Lopušanová tallied an assist in the first period in addition to her three goals, tying the school record for most points in a single period.
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UW extends its unbeaten streak over SCSU to 15 games, last falling to the Huskies on Feb. 3, 2023. The Badgers are 102-11-5 against the Huskies since their first meeting on Oct. 29, 1999.
Up Next: Wisconsin returns home to play St. Thomas on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 2 p.m (CT) and Sunday, Nov. 15, at 1 p.m. (CT).
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