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Gophers women score six unanswered to down Ohio State in WCHA Final Faceoff

Minnesota will face top-seeded Wisconsin in the WCHA title game on Saturday.
Nolan O'Hara|
Gophers players Taylor Stewart (2), Nelli Laitinen, center, Abbey Murphy and Ella Huber (26) celebrate Murphy's goal against St. Thomas on Oct. 13, 2023, at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.
Gophers players Taylor Stewart (2), Nelli Laitinen, center, Abbey Murphy and Ella Huber (26) celebrate Murphy's goal against St. Thomas on Oct. 13, 2023, at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. | Gopher Athletics

The third-seeded Gophers women's hockey team scored six unanswered goals to overcome a two-goal deficit and crush second-seeded Ohio State 6-2 in a WCHA Final Faceoff semifinal on Friday afternoon at Amsoil Arena in Duluth, Minn.

The Gophers will face top-seeded Wisconsin at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday in the WCHA title game.

The Buckeyes took a two-goal lead in the first 10 minutes of the game, getting goals from Jocelyn Amos and Joy Dunne just over seven minutes apart in the opening period. Abbey Murphy scored a power-play goal, her 100th career goal, 14 minutes, 5 seconds into the frame to cut the deficit in half, and Ella Huber added another on the power play with 1 minute, 8 seconds remaining in the period to knot it at 2-2 going into the second. From there, it was all the Minnesota Gophers.

Audrey Wethington scored the go-ahead goal 7 minutes, 51 seconds into the second period, and Ava Lindsay made it a two-goal Gophers lead when she scored 3 minutes, 56 seconds later. Murphy scored her second of the night 8 minutes, 21 seconds into the third period, and Chloe Primerano put the final nail in the coffin with an empty-netter with 3:21 to go.

The Buckeyes outshot the Gophers 24-21, but Hannah Clark made 22 saves on the 24 shots, while Amanda Thiele stopped just 15-of-20 shots for the Buckeyes. Minnesota went 2 for 4 on the power play; Ohio State went 0 for 3.

Now the Gophers will find themselves in the WCHA title game on Sunday against the border rival Badgers.

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Nolan O'Hara
NOLAN O'HARA

Nolan O'Hara covers all things Minnesota sports, primarily the Timberwolves, for Bring Me The News and Sports Illustrated's On SI network. He previously worked as a copy editor at the St. Paul Pioneer Press and is a graduate of the University of Minnesota's Hubbard School of Journalism. His work has appeared in the Pioneer Press, Ratchet & Wrench magazine, the Minnesota Daily and a number of local newspapers in Minnesota, among other publications.

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