Ohio State came into tonight’s contest as a decided underdog. The lady Bucks have been playing well, especially on the defensive end, but the Gophers are…well, the Gophers. It was going to take an outstanding effort from the Buckeyes to wrest points from the home team.
An outstanding effort is exactly what OSU delivered. The Buckeyes held their own with Minnesota on the stat sheet. The Gophers held only a slight 32-28 edge in shots. The teams were dead even on special teams, each recording one power play goal in three tries.
| goals by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| No. 2 Minnesota | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
Minnesota drew first blood just 90 seconds into the game, but it did not take long for the Bucks to answer. Danielle Gagne rang up an unassisted goal a minute later. Unfortunately it turned out to be a short night for the senior.
Gagne was assessed a major and a game misconduct for checking from behind at the 3:21 mark. The OSU penalty kill managed to hold off the lethal Minnesota power play at 5-on-4. They weren’t so successful with a two-woman deficit. Kara Gust went to the box to feel shame for checking, but before she could get free Minnesota scored, regaining the lead.
That lead was extended to 3-1 early in the second period, but the Scarlet and Gray dug in and fought their way back. The Bucks got their first man-advantage midway through the frame. Power play assassin Taylor Kuehl notched her eighth goal of the season. Seven of those markers have come on special teams.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorer (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2:46 | Danielle Gagne (unassisted) |
| 2 | 12:21 | Taylor Kuehl - PP (Sara Schmitt, Kari Schmitt) |
| 3 | 16:44 | Taylor Kuehl (Kari Schmitt) |
The score stood at 3-2 Minnesota for the rest of the second and much of the third period. Just when it was beginning to look like another good Buckeye effort would fall short, Kuehl struck again. The Minnetrista, MN native’s second tally of the game knotted the score at 3-3.
Neither side budged in overtime so the goes down in the NCAA books as a tie. The Gophers prevailed in the shootout, despite yet another goal from Kuehl, and earn the extra conference point.
The Buckeye defense did a fantastic job of containing Minnesota's high powered offense. The Gophers were held under four goals for only the eighth time in 25 games. Stacy Danczak got the call in net and stopped 29 of the 32 shots she faced.
The teams reconvene tomorrow afternoon at 3pm ET. The game can be seen via a BTN Plus subscription. You can also tune into a free audio stream through the Gophers’ website.
