Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Women’s Notes: Friars’ Fast Start in 2025
Scoring Depth Propels Providence to Four-Straight Wins
The Providence Friars have rattled off four straight wins to start 2025, all against Hockey East opponents. In those four games, they outscored their opponents 13-5, with 10 different goal scorers finding the back of the net.
Senior defenseman Lily Hendrikson (Edina, Minn.) led the Friars during the stretch with a goal and three assists. Her lone goal of the season was the game-winner in a 1-0 victory over Holy Cross on Saturday.
Forwards Audrey Knapp (So., Stevens Point, Wis.), Millie Sirum (Gr., Oslo, Norway), and Megane Quirion (Jr., Saint-Eustache, Quebec), along with defensemen Brooke Becker (Gr., Orchard Park, N.Y.) and Lily Martinson (Sr., Allen, Texas), each posted a goal and three total points to begin the second half of the season.
Other goal scorers included Peyton Blaney (So., Milgrove, Ontario), Hannah Johnson (Sr., Readfield, Maine), Reichen Kirchmair (Fr., Oakville, Ontario), and Hannah Clarke (Fr., Richmond Hill, Ontario).
Senior goaltender Hope Walinski (Lincoln, R.I.) has been instrumental in the Friars’ success. Walinski made 83 saves during the four-game win streak and posted a .948 save percentage. She improved her goals-against average to 1.79 for the season, with a .927 save percentage and a 10-7-3 record. She was named Goaltender of the Week for Hockey East following Providence’s sweep of Holy Cross last weekend.
Providence currently ranks third in penalty kill percentage at 88.7, allowing only seven power-play goals this season.
The Friars hit the road this weekend to face conference foe and No. 15 Northeastern.
Daily Scoreboard | Weekly Schedule | Composite Schedule | Stat Leaders | Goaltending Leaders
Must Read:
New England Hockey Journal: Strong showing for locals as USA takes silver at U18 Women’s Worlds
NHL: Color of Hockey: Sunohara ‘teared up’ after election to IIHF Hall of Fame
The Hockey News: A Look at Team USA Ahead of The FISU World University Games
The Ice Garden: Beanpot 2025: Semifinal Preview
The Ice Garden: Canada Takes Gold, Lopušanová Named MVP
USCHO: Hockey Humanitarian Award announces 14 nominees
USCHO: U18 Women’s Worlds College Commits
USCHO: HCA announces watch list of 33 goaltenders for 2025 Goalie of the Year award
Must Watch & Hear
Our Kids Play Hockey: The Bonelli Blueprint for Crushing Your Hockey Goals
USCHO: PodKaz Ep. 32 – Inside Women’s World Championship and an NCAA outdoor game
Jocks in Jills: Life Chats with Legendary Julie Chu
Cata-Mounts Comeback against Terriers:
The Vermont Catamounts fell short of a comeback against No. 13 Boston University on Friday night, losing 2-1 after trailing by two goals.
On Saturday, they found themselves in another deficit but managed to take the lead and upset the Terriers 3-2 in the second game of the weekend series.
The Catamounts had three different goal scorers, including freshman forward Oona Havana (Turku, Finland). Havana, who did not record a point in the first 19 games of the season, now has four points in her last four games with two goals and two assists.
Vermont will face another ranked opponent, No. 12 Boston College, on the road Friday.
Historic Weekend for Badgers:
The Wisconsin Badgers have maintained the No. 1 spot in the national rankings all season. Last weekend, they completed their 10th sweep of the season, defeating conference opponent Minnesota State.
Graduate forward Casey O’Brien (Milton, Mass.) recorded her 150th career assist during the weekend. The fifth-year player holds the Badgers’ records for most career assists and most assists in a single season.
On Saturday, head coach Mark Johnson earned his 650th career win, becoming the first NCAA Division I women’s coach to reach that milestone.
Beanpot Begins:
The stage is set for the 46th annual Beanpot at TD Garden, a rematch of 2024. No. 14 Boston University and Harvard opened the semifinals Tuesday at Matthews Arena. A 1-1 stalemate extended deep into overtime before Boston University graduate forward Lindsay Bochna (Toronto), notched her fifth goal of the season to send the Terriers to the championship game.
No. 15 Northeastern and No. 12 Boston College faced off in the second game of the evening in front of a record crowd of 3,298. The Huskies took an early lead and never looked back, defeating the Eagles 4-2. Northeastern returns to the championship game as the two-time defending champion.
The consolation and championship games are scheduled for Jan. 21 at TD Garden. Last year’s championship game set a New England women’s hockey attendance record with 10,633 fans.
Hockey Humanitarian Nominees:
The Hockey Humanitarian Award Foundation has announced 14 nominees for 2025. The award is presented annually to a student-athlete who demonstrates significant contributions on and off the ice through leadership and volunteerism.
The winner of the 30th-anniversary award will be announced in February. The women’s nominees are:
| Name | Cl. | Pos. | School | Hometown |
| Keri Clougherty | Sr. | D | Boston College | Lynn, Mass. |
| Kendra Fortin | Sr. | D | Bemidji State University | Thunder Bay, Ont. |
| Raice Szott * | Gr. | D | Merrimack College | Daysland, Alta. |
| Sarah Thompson * | Gr. | F | St. Lawrence University | Ottawa, Ont. |
| Clara Van Wieren | Gr. | F | Minnesota Duluth | Okemos, Mich. |
| Makenna Webster | Sr. | F | The Ohio State Univ. | St. Louis, Mo. |
| Audrey Wethington | Gr. | F | University of Minnesota | Edina, Minn. |
| * 2024 HHA Finalist | ||||
Fit To Print:
“Great, gritty win for our team tonight. We are starting to find the net on a regular basis and it’s nice to see our players rewarded. BU is an excellent team, and this win was a grind, and it shows the character of this group that we found a way when we weren’t at our best … It was a total team effort.”
— Vermont head coach Jim Plumer credited his players for their gritty upset over Boston University on Saturday. (Source: Vermont Athletics)
PWHL Note of the Week:
The PWHL set a new U.S. attendance record for a professional women’s hockey game with 14,018 fans in the crowd Sunday when Minnesota and Montreal faced off in Denver as part of the PWHL Takeover Tour. The mark surpasses the previous record of 13,736, set on March 16, 2024, at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena during a neutral-site game between Boston and Ottawa.
Sophie Jaques (Ohio State ’23) returned from injury and recorded her first goal of the season, along with an assist, marking her first multi-point game of the year.
Britta Curl-Salemme (Wisconsin ’24) scored her fifth goal of the season, leading Minnesota and ranking first among rookies in goals. She is tied with New York’s Alex Carpenter (Boston College ’16) for the league lead in the category. Minnesota’s second-round pick is tied for second in rookie points with seven (five goals, two assists) in nine games.
Other goal scorers for the Frost included Maggie Flaherty (Minnesota Duluth ’22), who netted the game-winner, and Michela Cava (Minnesota Duluth ’16).
Fries at the Bottom of the Bag:
Robert Morris sophomore goaltender Maggie Hatch (Cleveland Heights, Ohio) made 30 saves in their first conference win of the season over Lindenwood on Friday … New Hampshire’s Kira Juodikis (Sr., LaSalle, Ontario) recorded her second career hat trick lead the 5-3 win over Merrimack on Friday … Despite a 4-0 loss to No. 2 Ohio State, Bemidji’s netminder Eva Filippova (So., Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia) turned aside a season-high 40 shots on Saturday … Wisconsin forward Lacey Eden (Gr., Annapolis, Md.) leads the league with six game-winning goals this season … Penn State forward Tessa Janecke (Jr., Orangeville, Ill) leads the league in faceoffs won, 382, and percentage, 67.7 … Canada beat the United States 3-0 in the U18 Women’s Worlds tournament last week. Between the two teams there were 30 college commits rostered, the only players not committed are not yet eligible.
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Did you know? 97% of NCAA Division I women’s hockey players earn their degree!