Beavers return home to host first home series of season
The Bemidji State University women’s hockey team returns home for its first home series of the 2021-22 season this weekend with a non-conference series against (RV) Clarkson University Friday, Oct. 22 and Saturday. The Beavers (1-3-0, 1-3-0 WCHA) play at the Sanford Center for the first time this season and first since Feb. 27, 2021. Bemidji State will host the Golden Knights (5-0-1, 0-0-0 ECAC) for a two-game series with game one slated to begin at 6:01 p.m., Friday followed by game two at 3:01 p.m., Saturday.
Bemidji State hosts Clarkson at the Sanford Center which is planning to be fully open with new safety measures in place so the Beavers can play in front of full capacity crowds for the first time since the 2019-20 season. Tickets can be purchased at the Sanford Center Box Office or online at Ticketmaster.com.
Bemidji State begins the weekend’s action with a 1-3-0 record and are 1-3-0 in Western Collegiate Hockey Association play. The Beavers were swept on the road by No. 2 Ohio State University in their last action last weekend in a series where BSU was outscored 10-1 after a 7-0 loss in game one and a 3-1 loss in game two. BSU’s lone goal scorer in the series was sophomore Taylor Nelson who scored her first goal of the season in the second period of game two.
Junior Reece Hunt recorded the lone assist on the play and now leads the Beavers with three points off of one goal and two assists this season. Fifth-year senior Paige Beebe paces the team in goal scoring with two goals while Nelson has added a goal and assist this season to tie for second on the team in points.
Bemidji State is last in the WCHA by averaging 1.25 goals per game while its defense is fourth in the league by allowing 2.50 goals per game. BSU’s power play is 0-for-12 to begin the season and is the only remaining team to not score a power-play goal in the WCHA. Its penalty kill has allowed two goals on 12 chances to rank fourth in the league with a .833 penalty-kill percentage.
Fifth-year senior Kerigan Dowhy leads the Beavers’ netminders with a 1-2-0 record and has posted 1.89 goals against average and .943 save percentage to stand third in the WCHA in both categories.
Bemidji State and Clarkson will meet for just the fifth and sixth time in the two program’s histories this weekend with the Golden Knights holding a 4-0-0 record against the Beavers. BSU and Clarkson last met Sept. 28-29, 2018 in Bemidji with the Golden Knights earning a series sweep over the Beavers. Clarkson outscored the Beavers 10-4 in the series.
Head coach Jim Scanlan is looking for his first coaching win against the Golden Knights and is 0-4-0 when facing Clarkson.