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NCAA women's hockey: Wisconsin to face Minnesota-Duluth in title game ... again

Todd D. Milewski  —  3/21/2008 5:58 am

DULUTH, Minn. -- It'll be a national championship rematch.

Minnesota-Duluth didn't record a shot on goal in the second period and was outshot 43-15 for the game but edged New Hampshire 3-2 Thursday in the second Frozen Four women's hockey semifinal.

The Bulldogs (33-4-1) will play the University of Wisconsin (29-8-3) in Saturday's championship game. Last season, the Badgers beat UMD 4-1 in Lake Placid, N.Y., for their second straight national title.

Minnesota-Duluth won four of the five meetings with Wisconsin this season, two of them in overtime. Most recently, the Bulldogs fought off a three-goal UW rally for a 5-4 overtime victory in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoff championship game on March 9, also at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center.

What does it mean to be playing the Bulldogs for a sixth time this season? "Less preparation," Badgers coach Mark Johnson quipped as he walked out of the DECC Thursday night.

UMD broke a 2-2 tie with a Laura Fridfinnson third-period goal and got 41 saves from Kim Martin, who fought off an extended 5-on-3 chance by the Wildcats (33-4-1) late in the game.

New Hampshire coach Brian McCloskey now has seen both Wisconsin and Minnesota-Duluth this season. The Wildcats swept the Badgers in November.

"Wisconsin gave us a much better game, without question," he said.

Held down: Harvard's Sarah Vaillancourt blocked Alycia Matthews' power-play shot from the left point and took off down the ice with the puck.

Vaillancourt, one of the country's best forwards, had a chance to give the Crimson a 2-0 lead late in the first period of Thursday's first national semifinal. Badgers goaltender Jessie Vetter, however, didn't let it happen.

The stop kept the UW deficit manageable, allowing for a second-period rally.

"We're fortunate that Jessie stood her ground and was able to make the save, so instead of being 2-0 now it's 1-0," Johnson said. "It takes a whole different shape from the standpoint that you come out in the second period and score, change the momentum and get that energy on our side."

Vaillancourt, the Crimson's leading scorer, had only one other shot in the game, was held without a point and was minus-1.

Todd D. Milewski  —  3/21/2008 5:58 am