Duluth – The second game of this women's WCHA series between national powers began the exact opposite way as the opener.
Gophers women's hockey sweeps Minnesota Duluth in road series
Minnesota took a 2-0 lead and kept it; Lauren Bench had 31 stops.
November 29, 2020 at 6:03AM
On Saturday afternoon, the No. 3 Gophers — not Minnesota Duluth — took a two-goal lead and held on to edge the Bulldogs 2-1 at Amsoil Arena for a sweep.
Minnesota had rallied to win 4-2 the day before against UMD after falling behind 2-0.
But the Gophers (3-1 overall and conference), with Lauren Bench making 30 saves, didn't allow the Bulldogs to come back in the rematch although it did get tense in the final 10 minutes of the third.
No. 6 UMD (2-2) got within 2-1 on Ashton Bell's goal at 9:24 of the final period. The play was reviewed for possible goalie interference, but the tally stood.
Then Bulldogs nearly tied it with 3½ left when Kylie Hanley's shot hit a post.
Senior defenseman Emily Brown's first goal of the season put Minnesota ahead 1-0 at 7:52 of the opening period.
Junior forward Emily Oden made it 2-0 on a 4-on-3 power play with 1:18 left in the second.
It was the fourth game-winner for Oden, a former Edina High School star.
Emma Soderberg made 30 saves for UMD, which hosted hockey games at Amsoil Arena for the first time since March.
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Sam Rinzel had two of the Gophers’ three power play goals against the Irish.
