SPORTS
Wisconsin trying to stay afloat in ‘Land of Lakes’
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by Dave McGrath
Friday, February 18, 2005
The University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team will finish out its regular season schedule with a pair of trips to the state of Minnesota. This weekend the Badgers (22-7-1, 16-7-1 WCHA) will head into Bemidji, Minn. for a Friday-Saturday series to take on Bemidji State. The team will then travel to St. Cloud for a pair of matches the following weekend.
Wisconsin will look to continue its recent dominance against the Beavers and avoid a late season stumble that could cripple the squad’s hopes of its first NCAA tournament appearance. In the all-time series between the two teams, Wisconsin leads 22-1-1. The lone Badger loss to Bemidji came Dec. 9, 2001, when Wisconsin lost 5-1 despite having a 34-15 shot advantage. Included in the Badgers 22 wins are a sweep at the Kohl Center Oct. 16 and 17, the first times the two teams met this season. The Badgers won the pair of matches by a combined score of 12-2.
UW can ill afford to take Bemidji lightly however, as the team has improved greatly since their initial meeting. Bemidji began the season in a major funk, dropping 14 of their first 16. Since then, however, the Beavers have shown some bite, going 6-7-2, including a rare series shutout last weekend against Minnesota State.
“They have been playing for the last month, [some] pretty good hockey,” Wisconsin head coach Mark Johnson said. “Going into their building, they play on a very small ice sheet, and things happen very quickly. We just have to be ready for a very quick game. There is a lot riding on each game for us in regards to the big picture, an NCAA bid.”
“You don’t to stumble against anybody, and you certainly don’t want to stumble against teams that don’t have winning records, and our next four games are against those kind of opponents,” he continued. “It is our ability as a team to stay focused and do the things we have been doing all year that will dictate our success. If you are able to do that over 60 minutes, generally, you are going to be successful, unless you run into a hot goalie or something..”
Unfortunately for UW, they will find themselves meeting maybe the hottest goalie in the WCHA this weekend. Beaver goaltender Emily Brookshaw is giving Bemidji State reason to believe better times are ahead. The freshman goaltender has been the brightest spot on the team this year, amassing a 5-9-1 record, but with a goals-against average of just 2.53 and three shutouts. When Wisconsin and Bemidji State met earlier this season, Brookshaw gave up four goals in game two of the series. The consecutive shutouts against Minnesota State led to Brookshaw being named the WCHA Defensive Player of the Week for the first time.
The Beavers, although offensively challenged, do have more to worry about than just solid goaltending. Underclassmen Kelly Hart, Tara Hiscock and Nikki Eckebrecht have all enjoyed successful seasons and have been the most dangerous Beavers for most of the season. Hart has tallied 24 points on seven goals and 17 assists. Hiscock is tied for the team lead with nine goals, and Eckebrecht has scored eight times herself. However, the Beavers have a forward who has found a late season groove too, as Carly Napier scored all three of the Beaver’s goals in their 3-0 victory over Minnesota State in the first game of the season. Napier now is tied with Hiscock, who scored the team’s lone goal in game two against the Mavericks, for the team lead in goals.
All that said, Wisconsin should enjoy a distinct advantage in every phase of the game and does have a lot to play for as the regular season winds down. Wisconsin also might receive the services of Christine Dufour again this weekend, as she has been practicing for the first time since injuring her knee in January.
“The big thing is to keep our momentum that we have been building up the last two or three weekends and continue to move forward,” Johnson said. “If we do that, we should be fine.”
