Gophers Weekend Recap

Big Wins for Gopher Women’s Hockey and a heartbreaker for volleyball

Besides the football game which we all know how it went, a trio of Minnesota Golden Gophers women’s teams were in action playing ranked opponents. Some went well, and some, less so. Below is a recap of the weekend.

Women’s Hockey:

The #2/3 ranked Gophers opened their season at #9 UCONN in an early test compared to some of their rivals… (cough…Wisconsin…cough). But the Gophers were up to the task starting the season 2-0 sweeping the Huskies. Minnesota won the opener 4-1 before needing to go to overtime to pick up a 3-2 win on Saturday.

Minnesota got right to work on Friday night. Minnesota star forward Abbey Murphy got the Gopher on the board just 30 seconds into the season when she took a perfect breakout pass from Josefin Bouveng and went in on a breakaway on UCONN goalie Tia Chan. Murph beat her through her five-hole on her backhand and the Gophers took and early 1-0 lead.

They would make it 2-0 just a minute and a half later when sophomore forward Emma Kreisz intercepted a bad clearing pass along the boards and weaved her way through several defenders to put the puck past Chan to make it 2-0.

Minnesota kept the floodgates open as just 5:05 into the period it was Goher freshman phenom Chloe Primerano scoring her first collegiate goal on the power play. She took a gorgeous feed from Ava Lindsey from behind the net and easily put it past Chan to make it 3-0.

Murphy would make it 4-0 with just under three minutes left in the opening period after Bouveng took the puck from a Huskie player and fed Murphy right in front of the goal for the slam.

It was all the scoring the Gophers would need. UCONN added a goal midway through the second period, buy Skyler Vetter would make nine saves as the Gophers cruised to the win. It would me Minnesota head coach Brad Frost’s 500th win as a head coach and they gave him the full treatment postgame.

The Gophers expected a much better effort from UCONN on Saturday and they got it. The Huskies started the scoring on the power play midway through the first period and that how it would stay until the third. The Gophers outshot the Huskies 31-10 through the first two stanzas, but UCONN goalie Megan Warrener was fantastic. Minnesota would tie the game 26 seconds into the third period when Bouveng got her first goal of the year. Murphy took the puck in the zone and lost it behind the UCONN net before Bouveng picked it up and skated in front spun and shot it past Warrener to make it 1-1.

UCONN would take the lead just 21 seconds later—something that plagued the Gophers a season ago, and they led that 2-1 lead down the stretch. Minnesota would get the game tying goal with just over five minutes left in regulation on a gorgeous give and go breakout between Peyton Hemp and Vermont transfer Natalie Mylnkova. Mylikova got the puck the Gopher zone and fed Hemp who skated up on a two-on three break and found a streaking Mylnkova in front of the goal for the tip in the tie the game.

The game would go to overtime where who else—Murphy would put the final dagger into the Huskies and give the Gophers the sweep. Primerano took a shot that missed high and Murphy picked up the puck behind the UCONN net, skated all the way out to the blue line an weaved through all three defenders before beating Warrener top shelf to give the Gophers the win.

Murphy would finish the weekend with three goals and an assist, while Bouveng and Primerano both added a goal and a pair of assists.

Minnesota returns to Ridder Arena this weekend when they host Boston University.

Soccer:

The Minnesota Golden Gophers soccer team was the first Gopher team to head to the west coast for a regular season game as they headed to California for a pair of games against USC and UCLA. Minnesota would pick up a big come from behind tie on Thursday at #24 USC, but would fall to the Bruins on Sunday.

On Thursday night Minnesota got off to a bad start allowing the Trojans to score the opening goal just over a minute into the game. It would get worse as USC added their second goal 21 minutes later to take a 2-nil lead into the half. Senior Kyhah Harper—the nation’s leading goal scorer had a breakaway chance late in the first half, but could not get the ball past USC keeper Laurence Gladu.

But this Gopher team would not quit. Harper would not miss for her 13th goal for the season in the 63rd minute. Caroline Birdsell delivered a ball from half field to Harper’s feet Harper sped past the Trojans backline and on a breakaway put it in the net to cut the lead in half.

The Gophers would earn the draw in the 80th minute when captain and 5th year senior Sophia Bowman would put in a header on a free kick off of the foot of Paige Kalal to knot the score at 2.

The tie would be Minnesota’s first point they have earned off a top 25 opponent since tying No. 8 Rutgers, 2-2, in 2022.

Sunday it was a trip to Westwood to take on UCLA. Minnesota held serve with the Bruis for the i first two-thirds of the match, but just ran out of gas. The Bruins took a 1-0 lead 31 minutes into the game and took that lead into halftime. Minnesota knotted the score at 1 in the 60th minute when sophomore Kate Childers scored the first goal of her collegiate career off a feed from Kalal. It looked very similar to the Bowman goal from the USC game, but this time Childers bound a bouncing ball and rocketed it into the net to tie the match.

But the Minnesota magic would run out. UCLA would take the lead back ten minutes later on a breakaway and then added a third goal in the 81’s minute to finish off the win.

The Gophers will return home and face Northwestern on Friday night.

Volleyball:

The Gophers looked to spring a pair of back to back top ten wins when they hosted Purdue Saturday night at the Pav. Minnesota knocked off #7 Wisconsin in five sets on Thursday night, and this time the #10 Boilermakers came to town. It would be another see-saw back and forth match that would go five sets, but this time out not fall the Gophers way.

Minnesota dropped the first set 26-24 after they had a chance to win the set at 24-23 and dropped three straight points to the Boilermakers. In the second set the Gophers flipped the script and erased a 22-20 Purdue lead ending on a 5-1 run to win 25-23.

Purdue came back and won set three 25-20. Minnesota trailed for most of the set before grapping an 16-15 lead, but the Boilers again regained control and never trailed again the rest of the way.

Just like most of their five set matches this season Minnesota once again willed out a fourth set win. Purdue jumped out to an early lead before the Gophers battled back and went on a 9-4 run to take a 13-10 lead. They would not trail the rest of the way and pulled out a 25-23 win to force a 5th set.

Minnesota jumped to a quick 3-1 lead, but then Purdue took over dominating the rest of the way for the 15-10 set win, and the 3-2 match win. Purdue had 17 service aces on the night and outhit the Gophers .250 to .240. The Gophers outblocked PU 10-9 but lost the kills (65-61) and digs (79-61) battle as well.

Minnesota missed star outside hitter McKenna Wucherer who missed the match with an injury she suffered a week ago. She has played sparingly the last three matched but could not go in this one.

The Gophers will head to the west coast next weekend playing UCLA on Friday night and at #20 USC on Saturday.

Men’s Golf:

The Gopher men are in Madison this weekend/early this week for the Badger invitational. As a team the Gophers shot a 4-over par, 292 in the opening round on Sunday leaving them in ninth place.

On the individual side junior Cormack Sharpe nabbed six birdies in his first 18 holes, taking home a 3-under 69 for the day. His impressive performance places him tied for 3rd heading into the second round. Senior Bennett Swavely finished just one shot back of Sharpe for the day, carding a 2-under 70 in his first 18 holes. Swavely is currently tied for 11th place overall. Action continues on Monday and Tuesday at University Ridge Golf Course with live scoring available HERE.