The Colorado Buffaloes women’s hockey team faced off against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in a two-game series last weekend, and both games went to overtime.
The teams are closely ranked in the ACHA with Colorado at No. 20 and Minnesota ranked at No. 24, and the games showcased how evenly matched they were on the ice. Minnesota took Friday’s game 3-2, and the score ended the same on Saturday, but in Colorado’s favor.
The first game of the weekend was a hard-fought contest that ended in disappointment for the Buffaloes. Colorado took an early lead in the first period to go on top, 2-0. Minnesota needed to play smart if they would take the lead back from the Buffs.
Five minutes into the second period, Gopher skater Meghan Wendorf checked a Colorado player to give away a power play, but the Buffs couldn’t capitalize. Minnesota’s defense was able to hold CU off, even while they had one less player. They shifted their sights to offense after the power play ended and came up with their first goal. In the last few minutes of the second period, Minnesota tied the game at 2-2.
The final period had each team fighting for control of the puck. After a few close calls on either side of the rink, the third period ended with neither team gaining a point.
Moving to overtime, each team could only send out a goalie and three players. The puck was moved between teams equally until Minnesota sent their goalie off to get an extra player on offense. During this player change, Minnesota’s Laramie Prell was able to get a shot off to win the game.
On Saturday, the teams were back on the ice to face each other. The first period was a battle for puck possession and ended at 0-0 with some close calls for scoring but not close enough.
The second period started to look like the outcome would be the same, as a Minnesota player made a shot through two Colorado defensive players and the goalie to get a 1-0 lead. Colorado then quickly turned it around in just over a minute, Amanda Wallace got the puck into the net, bringing the score back to a tie, 1-1. Minnesota got a power play after their player was tripped by CU’s Julianna McDonald, however, they were not able to capitalize on the power play, and the period ended with a tie.
The third period went a similar way to the second. The puck spent equal time in each team’s grasp until Natalie Ewald got a point for Colorado, bringing the score to 2-1. Then Minnesota flipped the script in just over a minute, as Kiley Wrzosfor of Minnesota put the tie back onto the scoreboard at 2-2.
The puck did not make it back into a net the rest of the third, and the game went to overtime just like Friday. In overtime, both teams showed coordinated teamwork, but when Colorado’s Jordan Bonkwas briefly left unprotected, she was able to get the puck and put it in the net to secure the win, 3-2.
“It definitely felt good to win after blowing a lead and losing in overtime in the first game,” Colorado's Anna Masiello said postgame. “I thought we were very evenly matched ... They had a strong team and it was good back-and-forth hockey.”
Playing an equally skilled team kept the spectators interested and helped show both teams' teamwork and tactics. These were the final games for the CU team in 2024.
As winter break approaches, the team can look forward to the remaining 12 games they have in the spring. They will be back on the ice for six more weekends of competition starting next semester on Jan. 17th at the Colorado Rec Center.
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