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Craig Houtz

No. 2/3 Wisconsin Defeats No. 14 Women's Hockey to Split Series

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 2/3 Wisconsin rattled off nine unanswered goals to escape Happy Valley with a series split in a 9-1 victory over No. 14 Penn State women's hockey in Pegula Ice Arena on Friday night.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

  • After a scoreless first period, the Nittany Lions (1-0-0) benefitted from a clean sheet and a powerplay as Kiara Zanon jammed the puck home through the five-hole of goaltender Jane Gervais at the near post just 87 ticks into the second stanza.
  • Wisconsin evened the score at the 7:33 mark of the second period as Casey O'Brien took a no angle shot that slipped through Penn State goaltender Josie Bothun.
  • The Badgers took the lead as Britta Curl shot a rebound through traffic from the slot that Bothun never saw at 13:14 of the middle frame.
  • Just over three minutes later, Lacey Eden grabbed her own rebound and wrapped it into a yawning net to give the Badgers the 3-1 advantage at 16:43.
  • Just 23 seconds into the third period, Sophie Shirley netted the puck from between the circles, taking the 4-1 lead for Wisconsin.
  • Wisconsin extended their lead in the third to 7-1 after a trio of goals in just over three minutes scored by Eden, Laila Edwards and Kirsten Simms, respectively.
  • The Badgers added another goal to their tally by Jesse Compher, taking their lead to 8-1 at the 10:03 mark of the third.
  • Badger forward Sophie Shirley tallied her second goal of the night for the 9-1 advantage at 15:37 of the final frame.

GOALTENDING

  • Penn State freshman goalie Katie DeSa saw action in her first career game.
  • Bothun recorded 27 saves to post a .844 save percentage.

 
GAME NOTES AND STATS

  • The Nittany Lions suffered their first loss of the season taking their overall record to 1-1-0.
  • Penn State went 1-for-4 on the power play and Wisconsin was 1-for-3 with the man advantage.
  • Zanon's second period goal marked her 71st career point (25G, 46A).
  • Penn State outshot the Badgers 11-6 shots in the third period.
  • The Nittany Lions blocked 14 shots on net, with Karley Garcia and Lyndie Lobdell sharing the team lead (3).

NEXT UP

  • The Nittany Lions head to Canton, N.Y. to take on the No. 5 ranked Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs on neutral ice on Friday, Sept. 30 at 4 p.m. Penn State will then face off against St. Lawrence at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1 to continue their non-conference schedule.  

    Get all of the latest updates on Penn State women's ice hockey by following @PennStateWHKY on Twitter, "liking" the Penn State Women's Ice Hockey page on Facebook and following @pennstatewhky on Instagram.