The record-setting crowd that flocked to the Kohl Center last Saturday night witnessed the best women’s hockey team in the country do exactly what it has done for the better part of the last four months: beat down another opponent.

But the unique experience of playing in front of the massive home crowd will probably remain imprinted in the minds of many of the Badger players forever, even for senior captain Meghan Duggan, who has already played before plenty of large crowds during her time with the Olympic Team.

“To play in front of a crowd where 10,000 people are cheering for you, when you score it’s a big deal; it changes the game for me for sure,” Duggan said. “We work so hard; it’s so fun to get out there and have people get as excited about the game as we are.”

Until Saturday, sophomore defender Stefanie McKeough hadn’t had the pleasure of playing in front of so many people.

The experience for her, as it likely was for many of her young teammates, was at times almost difficult to grasp.

“I think you just try to compose yourself and act like it happens every game. But at the same time you do have to take in the moment,” McKeough said. “There were a few times when I definitely caught myself looking up in the crowd and being like ‘oh, we have people in the 300 section.'”

The big crowd gave the Badgers a little extra adrenaline to play hard, as well.

“It’s just so much fun to play in front of when the crowds behind you and just gives you that extra push to block that shot or go get that puck,” McKeough said.

However, for many of the 10,668 fans it was the first time he or she had seen Wisconsin’s most productive and successful team perform in person.

On average, the Badgers draw around 2,000 fans per game, 13,000 less than the Kohl Center’s capacity, fostering an atmosphere that at times fails to get the heart-rate going, even if Wisconsin is destroying another opponent (as it often does).

The sea of empty seats that litter the Kohl Center during games can frustrate some of the players who wish they drew the type of crowds that men’s hockey or basketball draw.

“It’s a bummer. It would be nice to see us get what the men get, but that’s just life, and that’s what happens,” Duggan said.

Duggan and the rest of the Badgers may have the right attitude about their crowds and what they can reasonably draw, but that doesn’t validate a lack of enthusiasm for women’s hockey in general.

In many of the hockey media outlets, unless it’s the playoffs (and even then it’s hard to find women’s hockey news), the women’s game is often passed over.

“On a daily basis, if you are going to get any information about [women’s] college hockey, you’re going to have to go to the internet or go to the respective team’s websites,” head coach Mark Johnson said.

The scary thing is that Wisconsin is probably the most fortunate in terms of local support and attendance. The Badgers draw more fans than any other women’s hockey program in the country and generate the most amount of press from local media.

Part of that exposure draws from the success of the program. More people are willing to go out and watch a top-ranked college team.

“I love the fans in Madison. I think they come in every weekend and support us to the fullest of their abilities, and it’s great to have the fans that we have,” Duggan said.

As for the rest of the women’s college hockey, gaining traction in the sports-media world will simply take time as the sport was only accepted in Division-I 11 years ago.

Events like the one which transpired at the Kohl Center will only hurry along the process, not only locally, but also nationally.

“I see strides in a lot of areas, and that’s the only thing that you can do: to try and continue to get product and make it good. I don’t think 10 years ago anyone would have thought we’d have 10,000 people at one of our games at the Kohl Center,” Johnson said.