Beavers host Engineers in first series at Sanford Center of 2023-24

BSU Women’s Hockey hosts non-conference series against RPI

The Bemidji State University Women’s Hockey team makes its return to Sanford Center this weekend as it prepares to host its first home series of the 2023-24 season. The Beavers continue non-conference action and host Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for a two-game series Friday, Oct. 6 and Saturday.

The Beavers (0-2-0) and Engineers (2-0-2) drop the puck on their series Friday at 6:01 p.m., and conclude the series Saturday at 3:01 p.m.

Each game of the series will be streamed online at B1G+ with play-by-play provided by the Beaver Radio Network. A Beaver Radio Network broadcast will also be available for each game on the radio dial at 94.3 FM or online at www.beaverradionetwork.com.

Bemidji State returns to action after having last weekend off. The Beavers opened the 2023-24 season two weekends ago (Sept. 23-24) and fell in two games at Lindenwood University.

The Beavers were led by seniors Taylor Nelson and Gabbie Smith after both recorded a goal and an assist in that series.

The line of Nelson, Smith and freshman Kate Johnson accounted for two of the Beavers three goals in the series and five of eight team points.

Freshman Hailey Armstrong got off to a quick start to her collegiate career and scored the Beavers’ lone goal in just her second collegiate game. She and Johnson were the lone freshmen to record points in the series.

Head coach Jim Scanlan dressed seven freshmen in the first two games including three defensemen.

Junior Kendra Fortin and sophomore Raeley Carney were the only other Beavers to record a point in the series after each tallied an assist.

Junior Abbie Thompson started the first game of the season in between the pipes for the Beavers and allowed three goals off 36 shots and recorded a career-high 33 saves. Thompson leads the WCHA in saves just two games into the season.

Freshman Eva Filippova started game two for her first collegiate appearance and stopped 25-of-28 shots in her debut.

BSU’s penalty kill unit saw plenty of action over the first two games leading the Western Collegiate Hockey Association with 11 penalty kill attempts. The Beavers successfully killed of nine Lion power plays and sit third in the league with a .818 penalty kill percentage.

Freshman defenseman Riley Reeves stood out on defense and blocked a league-leading six shots in the first two games.

The Engineers are coming off a series sweep over Stonehill College and kept the Skyhawks off the scoreboard posting back-to-back shutouts. RPI out-scored the Skyhawks 8-0 in the series and have out-scored its opponents 9-2 through the first four games.

This weekend will be just the fourth and fifth meetings between the two teams and first since the 2019-20 season.

The Beavers are 3-0-0 all-time against the Engineers and previously swept RPI in their 2019-20 series in Troy, N.Y. This weekend will be just the second time the Engineers will visit the Sanford Center and first since the 2014-15 season.

Jim Scanlan is 3-0-0 all-time coaching against the Engineers but no Beaver on the current roster has played against RPI except for Assistant Coach Alexis Joyce.

Bemidji State has out-scored RPI 11-1 in the all-time series.

2023-24 is the 26th season of Bemidji State Women’s Hockey. In 26 seasons, the Beavers are 271-514-78 (.360).

Head coach Jim Scanlan is in his 10th season at the helm of the Bemidji State Women’s Hockey program. He is 118-174-21 (.413) in his coaching career, is one of 22 head coaches in Division I Women’s Hockey with 100 career victories and is sixth among active WCHA coaches in victories.

During the Summer, Scanlan announced the return of two former Beavers to his coaching staff for the upcoming season. Amber Fryklund makes her return as Associate Head Coach after pursuing a teaching career while former defenseman Alexis Joyce makes her coaching debut and was named an Assistant Coach.

They join Sarah Bobrowski (Assistant Coach) as the four leaders of the program for the season.

Senior Taylor Nelson was voted by her teammates to lead the 2023-24 Beavers on and off the ice and will dawn the “C” on her sweater. She will be assisted by fellow seniors Khloe Lund and Gabbie Smith who will serve as alternates and wear the “A”.

Bemidji State was picked eighth in this year’s WCHA Preseason Coaches’ Poll and will look to improve on a 5-30-1 2022-23 season.

The Beavers have 24 student-athletes rostered for the 2023-24 season with 14 forwards, six defensemen and four goaltenders.

BSU returns 15 athletes from last year (10 forwards, three defensemen, two goaltenders) and lost 10 athletes (4 forwards, five defensemen, one goaltender) to graduation or the transfer portal.

Scanlan has added nine newcomers to the squad with four forwards, three defensemen and two goaltenders.

BSU lost four of its top five scorers from last season and will have to replace 45 percent of its goals (18).

Junior Genevieve Hendrickson (2g-5a) and senior Khloe Lund (1g-6a) are the top scorers returning with each posting seven points in 30 games last season.

Nelson and sophomore Raeley Carney are the top returning goal scorers after each scored three goals.

Carney leads all returners with two power-play goals.

Bemidji State also lost its starting netminder from last year in Hannah Hogenson who started 30 of the team’s 36 games and played in 80 percent of the teams minutes in goal.

Junior Abbie Thompson is the top returning goaltender after starting six games last year and posted a 2-4-0 record with a 4.68 goals against average and .844 save percentage.

Bemidji State’s nine newcomers to the team are Olivia Dronen, Ana Davis, Talya Hendrickson, Kate Johnson, Shelby Sandberg, Riley Reeves, Hailey Armstrong and Eva Filippova.

The Beavers look to add goal scoring from some of the highest scoring players in the state of Minnesota. Talya Hendrickson and Kate Johnson helped Warroad High School to back-to-back Class A State Tournament championships with Talya, younger sister of BSU forward Genevieve Hendrickson, recording the second most points in both classes with 101 (38g-63a) and Johnson third with 98 (38g-60a). The pair combined for 572 points in their Warroad careers.

The 2023-24 BSU Women’s Hockey roster consists of 16 Minnesotans, one Alaskan, one North Dakotan, one Wisconsinite, four Canadians and the program’s first Russia native in freshman goaltender Eva Filippova.

The Beavers added one student-athlete out of the transfer portal in junior goaltender Emerald Kelley from Minnesota State University, Mankato.