Just one year after missing the NCAA tournament, the Wisconsin Badgers are heading back to the Frozen Four.
Before a sellout crowd at LaBahn Arena, the No. 3 Badgers (21-5-2 WCHA, 28-7-2 overall) defeated Harvard (16-3-3 ECAC, 23-7-4) 2-1 in their quarterfinal matchup.
“We’re certainly happy with the effort and our game tonight. It’s never easy to win this quarterfinal game,” said head coach Mark Johnson. “I thought we came out with good energy, played well and earned a hard-fought victory.”
With the result, senior goaltender Alex Rigsby recorded her 100th career win, becoming just the third goaltender in NCAA history to reach that benchmark.
The victory also moved her into a tie for second on the all-time NCAA wins list.
“I’m excited for our players, certainly excited for Alex [Rigsby] for getting her 100th career win,” Johnson said. “Meant a lot not only this season, but throughout her career and to get her 100th win the last night she plays at LaBahn Arena, I’m sure she’s excited and her family is excited. We as a staff and as an organization are excited for her.”
Junior forward Blayre Turnbull found the back of the net with just over three minutes remaining in the first period to get UW on the board.
Redshirt junior forward Brittany Ammerman had an assist on the Turnbull goal, making her the 19th player in program history to record 100 career points.
“I didn’t know I was that close to 100 points, didn’t really hear that much about it, but I guess it’s good to get that,” Ammerman said. “It’s awesome that we got 100 wins for Alex (Rigsby) and 100 points for me and now we’re going to the Frozen Four for the third time in our career. It’s exciting.”
The Badgers continued to dominate on offense in the second period, scoring again on a goal by junior forward Katy Josephs with over three minutes to go in the period.
UW, who outshot the Crimson 35-16 in the first two periods, took a 2-0 lead into the second intermission.
In the third period, the offenses were much more balanced, with Harvard generating several good scoring opportunities.
But Rigsby, who had 23 saves in the game, continuously stonewalled the Crimson. This included a highlight reel stop where she had to reach all the way across the net to deflect away a shot, stopping what looked like it would be an easy Harvard goal.
“I got caught up with someone in front of the net, so I saw her, saw the puck get passed across and the girl was taking the shot and it was just a desperation save,” Rigsby said. “Used that hand-eye coordination and dropped down with my stick and was lucky enough to have it pop in to my glove at the same time.”
The Crimson were able to get on the board with over three minutes left in the third period on a goal by sophomore forward Dylanne Crugnale. However, they were unable to score the equalizer in the game’s final minutes, securing the win for the Badgers.
Wisconsin now heads to Hamden, Conn. for the Frozen Four, where they will take on No. 1 Minnesota next Friday in the semifinals.
Wisconsin has lost to the Gophers in all four of the teams’ meetings this season, but will get one more shot at their rival with a national championship berth on the line.
“Coach says all the time, as soon as it hits playoff time, records don’t exist anymore,” Rigsby said. “That’s kind of the mentality we should have going into this game, knowing that we’ve prepared all year. This is our time. It’s going to be a great game.”
UWBadgers.com contributed to this report.
