The Bemidji State University women’s hockey team jumps right into Western Collegiate Hockey Association play this weekend by hosting No. 2 University of Minnesota for the league-opening series. The Beavers (2-0-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) and Gophers (2-0-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) clash in a two-game series starting Friday, Oct. 7 at 3:07 p.m. followed by the final game Saturday, Oct. 8 at 3:07 p.m.

Bemidji State is 6-64-7 all-time against the Gophers in a series that dates back to 1998 and are 2-30-3 at home. BSU’s last win came March 7, 2015 in a 1-0 shutout in the WCHA Final Face-off. The Beavers lost all four games against the Gophers in 2015-16. The last time the Gophers were at the Sanford Center, the Beavers lost a pair of 2-1 games with BSU falling in the last game during overtime.

The Bemidji State University women’s hockey team got off to a good start to the 2016-17 season by going undefeated in Syracuse, N.Y. The Beavers swept Syracuse University in non-conference action.

Bemidji State began the weekend with a 2-1 victory on opening night over the Orange. The Beavers rallied from down one after the first to score two unanswered goals, including the game-winner with 12:31 left to play in the final period. Junior Reilly Fawcett scored the game-winning goal while sophomore Emily Bergland led the Beavers with two points (1g-1a) in the game. Senior Brittni Mowat earned her first win of the season after stopping 11-of-12 shots to help guide the Beavers to victory.

The Beavers completed the sweep the following night with a 3-0 shutout of the Orange. Junior Erin Deters stopped all 28 shots by SU, including nine on the power play, to earn her second career shutout. Alexis Joyce (1g-1a), Bailey Wright (0g-2a) and Kiki Radke (0g-2a) all recorded two points in the game while Bergland scored the game-winning goal in the second period.

Listen to the games with the GOphers this weekend on Talk Radio 1360, KKBJ-AM and online at beaverradionetwork.com