Going into this season we knew the lady Bucks would need time to adjust to the departure of key seniors and the arrival of a new coaching staff. We also knew it would be a challenge for them to find a groove against some tough early season opposition. That doesn’t make the adjustment period any more pleasant to endure. Today was another rough outing for Ohio State as the Buckeyes were swept by No. 3 Wisconsin.
The Badgers put OSU in an early hole. Emily Clark netted the game’s first goal less than a minute into the contest. Annie Pankowski followed up with an even strength tally at the four minute mark. In short order the Bucks found themselves down two goals.
| boxscore | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 3 Wisconsin | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
They also found themselves down two skaters and facing a lengthy Wisconsin 5-on-3. The game was getting away from Ohio State. But the Buckeye defenders and goaltender Alex LaMere dug in and fended off the entire 1:30 two-man advantage.
The successful kill gave the team some bounce in their step. LaMere shut down a breakaway attempt from preseason WCHA player of the year, Sarah Nurse. The Bucks began to put some shots on Badger goalie Ann-Renee Desbiens. Kendall Curtis came close to nicking the netminder, but her shot rang the pipe and caromed away.
At the first intermission the deficit was still a manageable two goals. Ohio State’s energy was good. The outcome of the game did not seem as predetermined as it had at the start.
However Wisconsin crushed any momentum the Buckeyes built up with two goals in the first six minutes of the second period. You could see the air go out of the Bucks. Deflated and frustrated they no longer had the gas to keep up with the Badgers.
Coach Jenny Potter tried all the traditional tricks for a coach to reignite a team. She made a goalie swap. Redshirt freshman Selena Hunter made her collegiate debut in net, relieving LaMere.
When that didn’t work Potter used her timeout to attempt to pump up her squad. That met with slight success. The Buckeyes survived the game but continued to struggle offensively. Desbiens stopped all 19 Ohio State shots in the contest, earning a complete series shutout.
Collectively LaMere and Hunter turned aside 53 of Wisconsin’s 61 shots. Six different Badgers recorded goals in the game. Neither team converted a power play opportunity. OSU went 0-for3. UW was 0-for-5.
This was a rough week for the lady Bucks. Lessons in resiliency and guts are never fun to learn but those traits are ones the team will need through the long grind of the WCHA season. They will certainly come in handy next week as No. 1 Minnesota visits the Ice Rink for Ohio State’s home opener.
