UMD Women’s Hockey Set for Top-5 Showdown with Minnesota
The No. 4/5 University of Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team will face its first nationally ranked opponent this weekend, hosting No. 3 University of Minnesota at AMSOIL Arena on Friday and Saturday for their second Western Collegiate Hockey Association series of the season. Friday’s puck drop is scheduled for 6:02 p.m., with Saturday’s game beginning at 3:02 p.m.
Watch the UMD Women’s Hockey Weekly press Conference – Oct. 22, 2025 (Head coach Laura Schuler, Defenseman Kate Kosobud and Krista Parkkonen)
KRAEMER’S A GAMER: Sophomore Caitlin Kraemer currently leads UMD with 11 points in her first 11 games (1.38 points per game average). She has recorded points in all but one game (7-of-8) and has scored goals in six of her first eight skates. The Waterloo, Ontario native, also a member of Canada’s Olympic Training Camp roster, has posted multiple-point games three times this season. Kraemer is second in the NCAA with three game-winning goals, tied for fifth in goals (7), and tied for ninth in the NCAA with 11 points.
THIRD PERIODS A CHARM: UMD has scored over half of its goals in the third period this season – 16 of 28. While the Bulldogs have only two goals in the first period, they have nine in the second.UMD has scored almost double in the third period what they have scored in the first and second periods combined (9).
NEW BULLDOGS, BIG OFFENSE: 16 of UMD’s 28 goals through their first six games have come from transfers or rookies new to Duluth this season. Thea Johansson (7) and Josie St. Martin (2) have combined for nine goals, while freshman forwards Molly Cole (3) and Rae Mayer (3) have added six. the bulldogs have scored the most goals through eight games since the 2021-22 NCAA Runner-up season, where UMD also logged 29 tallies through eight skates.
REAL GOAL GETTERS: Caitlin Kraemer and Thea Johansson currently lead the Bulldogs with seven goals each through the first eight games. Kraemer opened the season scoring…
3 Loss Away
Nov. 16, 2024 2-3 Loss Home
Nov. 15, 2024 1-4 Loss Home
Feb. 24, 2024 2-4 Loss Away
Feb. 23, 2024 1-1 Tie Away
Nov. 18, 2023 1-3 Loss Home
Nov. 17, 2023 1-3 Loss Home
Mar. 11, 2023 0-3 Loss Away*
Jan. 28, 2023 3-4 Loss Home
*NCAA Regional Final
Last season, UMD went 0-4 against the Gophers, including a sweep by Minnesota at AMSOIL Arena in late January by scores of 3-2 and 1-0.
in the Friday night game, UMD outshot Minnesota but the Gophers outscored the bulldogs 3-2.
Olivia Wallin scored both of the UMD’s goals, but it was the Gophers, against the grain early in the first two frames, that scored a goal in each period to hold the Bulldogs off.
Minnesota had been skating uphill and outshot by a 3-to-1 margin when Emma Kreisz of the Gophers struck for the game’s first lead at 14:52. Wallin had the answer at the 17:12 mark, however, and buried a rebound from a Brenna Fuhrman shot to equalize at 1-1.
The Gophers retook the lead 6:40 into the second period, and then went up 3-1 on Natalie Mlynkova’s strike at 14:09. That 3-1 deficit would haunt the Bulldogs until Wallin was sprung on breakaway mid-ice from Clara Van Wieren. Wallin beat Gopher goaltender Hannah Clark to pull UMD within a single goal at 16:52.
UMD struggled to get goaltender Eve Gascon off the ice, however, and unfortunately for the Bulldogs, game one of the series, and the shot at third place in the WCHA, went to the Gophers.
The Bulldogs outshot Minnesota 30-27 in the skate, and Gascon had 24 stops for UMD. Neither team scored on the power play – the Bulldogs went 0-of-2, while the Gophers were scoreless in one attempt.
saturday afternoon, in the most unreasonable of all ways, UMD fell 1-0 to then No. 4 University of Minnesota at Ridder Arena after a puck errantly came off the back glass and back over the goal. Eve Gascon backhand gloved the puck out of the air over her shoulder, but not before it apparently crossed the line, according to the official review.
The result was crushing for the Bulldogs, who had gone toe-to-toe with the Gophers for a second-straight day, but couldn’t put the puck away. After two scoreless periods, Minnesota’s fluke goal came at the 11:21 of the third and was credited to Abbey Murphy, though the back glass pulled all the necessary tricks.
The Gophers outshot UMD 49-22, but Gascon made 48 stops in her sixth 40+ save game of the season. Both teams were perfect on the penalty kill – the Bulldogs went 3-for-3 on their PK, while Minnesota went 4-of-4.
BULLDOGS FROM GOPHERS: UMD has two players that transferred from minnesota last season, their only season in Minneapolis — senior defenseman Krista Parkkonen and sophomore kate Kosobud.
Parkkonen appeared in 39 games and recorded one goal and four assists for five points, while Kosobud skated in 16 games and registered one assist.
LAST TIME OUT: The bulldogs bullied Minnesota last weekend in their first home action of the season, sweeping the Mavericks with 5-0 and 3-1 wins.
In game one, the fire alarm that went off a
UMD Women’s Hockey Completes Sweep of Mavericks with dramatic Comeback
The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) women’s hockey team rallied from a 1-0 deficit, scoring three unanswered goals in a span of just over three minutes late in the third period to defeat Minnesota State University (MSU) 3-1 on Saturday night. The victory secured a series sweep for the Bulldogs and extended their unbeaten streak against the Mavericks to 15 games.
MSU drew first blood at 6:58 of the first period with a goal from Taylor Otremba. The score remained 1-0 for a notable portion of the game, largely due to the strong goaltending performance of MSU’s Hailey Hansen, who stopped over 30 shots.
UMD finally broke through at 13:45 of the third period when Grace Sadura scored, capitalizing on a one-time feed from Zoey Krock from behind the net. https://umdbulldogs.com/news/2023/10/28/womens-hockey-bulldogs-complete-series-sweep-of-mavericks-with-late-rally.aspx
Just 20 seconds later, Thea Johansson gave the Bulldogs a 2-1 lead, notching her 100th career point on a high shot assisted by Danielle Burgen. Johansson completed the comeback surge,adding another goal by converting a rebound from Caitlin Kraemer,extending UMD’s lead to 3-1 and sealing the victory.
UMD goaltender, Eve Gascon, recorded 17 saves. Despite struggling on the power play, going 0-for-4, the Bulldogs controlled the faceoffs, winning 29 of 51. UMD also dominated the shot count, outshooting MSU 42-18, including a decisive 16-4 advantage in the third period.
Series History: UMD now holds an all-time record of 96-9-11 against MSU. The Bulldogs’ 15-game unbeaten streak against the Mavericks dates back to February 27, 2022.
Home Ice Advantage: This win marks the fourth consecutive season UMD has won its first home game, dating back to the 2022-23 season.