The bad juju that plagued the women’s hockey Bucks in Duluth yesterday continued in their series finale on Saturday evening. Ohio State surrendered two third period goals to the Bulldogs and fell by a final score of 2-1. One week after posting their best series of the season, the Buckeyes suffer their worst result of 2018.
| Scoring by Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 5 Ohio State | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Minnesota-Duluth | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
OSU and UMD skated a scoreless opening period. Tatum Skaggs finally broke the deadlock midway through the middle frame. The score was the culmination of a furious Buckeye assault. The Scarlet and Gray outshot Duluth 7-0 in a span of just a few minutes. Another eight shots went awry (missed, blocked, or hit the pipe) during the sequence.
| Buckeye Goal Scorer (Assists) | Pd | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Tatum Skaggs (Jincy Dunne, Emma Maltais) | 2 | 11:00 |
Skaggs’ goal was No. 18 on the season. The Bucks’ sensational freshman now ranks among the top 10 in the nation in goal scoring. (This is a place generally reserved for the east coast’s prolific producers. It's uncommon for a skater from the more defensive-minded WCHA.)
Unfortunately Skaggs' goal would also prove to be the high water mark of the game for the Scarlet and Gray. After claiming the lead the Buckeye attack tapered off. The Bucks maintained a slim 1-0 advantage going into the third period but it did not hold up.
A pair of goals by UMD’s Anna Klein boosted the Bulldogs into the lead. OSU tried to rally late. Jincy Dunne nearly played the hero with a shot off the post. In the end, though, the Bucks dropped the game. In spite of the loss head coach Nadine Muzerall remained upbeat about her team's effort.
Head coach Nadine Muzerall spoke with us about tonight's loss at UMD #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/6TAwURucES
— Ohio State Women's Hockey (@OhioState_WHKY) January 28, 2018
The sweep by Minnesota-Duluth is just the second such series result for Ohio State this season. The Buckeyes were defeated in back-to-back games by Wisconsin in November. OSU falls to 17-7-4 overall and 10-4-4-3 in the WCHA. The team slides to third place in the conference standings, now one point behind Minnesota.
Ohio State returns to Columbus next week for a showdown with No. 1 Wisconsin. Games are currently scheduled for Friday at 6pm ET and Saturday at 3pm ET.
