Beavers host No. 3 Gophers to continue homestand

The Bemidji State University women’s hockey team continues its four-game homestand this weekend by hosting No. 3/3 University of Minnesota for a pair of Western Collegiate Hockey Association games. The Beavers (2-3-1, 1-3-0 WCHA) and third-ranked Gophers (5-3-0, 3-3-0 WCHA) begin their series Friday, Oct. 29 with game one followed by game two Saturday. Puck drop for game one is scheduled for 3:01 p.m., at the Sanford Center while game two is slated for a 2:01 p.m., start.

Bemidji State resumes WCHA play after hosting Clarkson University for a non-conference series this past weekend. The Beavers went 1-0-1 against the Golden Knights who were receiving votes in both the USCHO.com and USAToday/USAHockey Magazine national polls last weekend. Bemidji State and Clarkson skated to a 1-1 tie in game one which saw the Golden Knights tie the game with a late goal in the third period to salvage the tie. The Beavers then earned a 2-1 victory in game two after sophomore Gabbie Smith scored the eventual game-winning goal.

Senior Graysen Myers led the Beavers with two goals in the series while sophomore Taylor Nelson posted two assists, both in Saturday’s victory. Sophomore Hannah Hogenson was spectacular in net for the Beavers and posted a 1-0-1 record with a 0.96 goals against average and .963 save percentage after stopping 52-of-54 shots from Clarkson. Hogenson earned her first collegiate victory Saturday when she stopped 28-of-29 shots. She leads BSU netminders with a 1.63 goals against average on the season and has posted a .938 save percentage.

Bemidji State enters this weekend’s series sixth in the WCHA standings with three points in conference play and a 1-3-0 league record. The Beavers are 2-5-1 overall. Sophomore Taylor Nelson paces the Beavers with four points off of one goal and three assists. Just six games into the season, she has tied her season-high point total set last season after totaling four points in 18 games her freshman season.

She is followed by fifth-year senior Paige Beebe (2g-1a), senior Graysen Myers (2g-1a) and junior Reece Hunt (1g-2a) who each have posted three points in six games. Myers’ point total has also tied a career-best just six games into the season after she totaled three points off of two goals and one assist during the 2020-21 season.

Sophomore Gabbie Smith is tied with Myers and Beebe for the team lead in goals with two and is second on the team with a .182 shooting percentage. Hogenson started back-to-back games following fifth-year senior Kerigan Dowhy’s recent injury. She has posted a 1-1-1 record in 183:57 minutes with a goals against average of 1.63 and save percentage of .938. Those numbers are ranked fifth and sixth in the conference, respectively.

Bemidji State averages 1.33 goals per game so far this season which is seventh in the league while its defense has held opponents to 1.67 goals per game which stands fourth in the WCHA. The Beavers’ defense is ranked 15th in the nation in goals per game.

The Beavers have yet to score a power-play goal this season and have come up empty on its 17 chances. BSU is one of four teams in Division I to have yet score a power-play goal.

Bemidji State’s penalty kill has turned aside 12-of-14 chances this season for a percentage of .857 which is fourth in the WCHA and 21st in the nation.

Bemidji State hosts No. 3 Minnesota for the first time this season. The Beavers are 9-82-7 all-time against the Gophers including a 3-39-3 record when playing in Bemidji. Minnesota has won the last 10 meetings between the two teams with BSU’s last when coming Dec. 2, 2017, a 4-2 victory at Ridder Arena. The Beavers last beat the Gophers at the Sanford Center Oct. 8, 2016 in a 2-0 shutout. Fifth-year seniors Lindsey Featherstone and Paige Beebe lead all active skaters with 14 career games played against Minnesota while Lydia Passolt follows with 12. Beebe leads all active skaters with six career points (2g-4a) against Minnesota while Passolt (1g-2a) and junior Reece Hunt (3g-0a) follow with three points each.

Dowhy paces BSU’s netminders with five career games played against the Gophers and has posted a 0-4-0 record, 4.67 goals against average and .867 save percentage. Senior Lexi Baker has appeared in two games against UM with a 4.00 goals against average and .789 save percentage while Hogenson has appeared in one game with a 18.46 goals against average, .556 save percentage in only 12 minutes of work.

Bemidji State will see a familiar face in net this weekend in graduate student Lauren Bench. Bench leads the Gophers with 240:22 minutes played and has posted a 2-2-0 record with a 2.75 goals against average and .896 save percentage. Bench spent her first four collegiate seasons with the Beavers and is fourth on the program’s all-time wins list with 30 career wins.

Minnesota enters the weekend third in both the USCHO.com and USAToday/USAHockeyMagazine national polls, sport a 5-3-0 record overall and are fourth in the WCHA standings with a 10 points and a 3-3-0 league record.

The Gophers are led by senior Taylor Heise who has posted 10 points off of five goals and five points while senior Abigail Boreen follows with nine points off of three goals and six assists. Freshman Peyton Hemp is third on the team with eight points off of two goals and six assists. Minnesota is fifth in the conference by averaging 3.38 goals per game while its defense allows 2.62 goals per game to stand sixth. The Gophers have scored four power-play goals on 18 chances this season to rank fourth in the WCHA at .222 percent while its penalty kill stands seventh in the league after allowing eight power-play goals in 26 chances (.692).