How Tessa Janecke Lifted Penn State Women's Hockey to the Frozen Four

STATE COLLEGE | Tessa Janecke wore No. 22 for Team USA. For the Penn State women’s hockey team, she wears No. 15 — and it’s a number worth watching. Penn State was unranked before Janecke wore blue and white, and now the program is making its first Frozen Four appearance.

The third-seeded Nittany Lions play the second-seeded Wisconsin Badgers at 7:30 p.m. E.T. on Friday on home ice at Pegula Ice Arena. After striking gold at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, Janecke has the chance to win a national championship in the same year as a Penn State senior.

“I’m a good teammate and not just someone who can achieve records on the ice,” Janecke said about her Penn State legacy. “How I am with my team off the ice and the people I meet off the ice so that’s really anything I’d want to leave here. That’s more important to me than individual success.”

Janecke in February became the first Penn State athlete to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympics. She was on the ice for both goals, including the overtime winner, of Team USA’s 2-1 victory over Canada in the final. At Penn State, she is the program’s career-leader in points, has won three straight conference player- and forward-of-the-year awards and is a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award as the top player in women’s hockey.

“She’s the hardest worker that I’ve ever met,” senior goaltender Katie Desa said. “She’s always going to give 110 percent, whether it’s on the forecheck or the backcheck, and she’s just honestly super-reliable. It’s great to have been a part of her journey for the past four years.”

With Janecke on the roster, Penn State’s program and standard has changed dramatically. The team moved into the national rankings, reaching No. 3 this season, and won four straight Atlantic Hockey America championships. After losing in the regional final for the past three seasons, Penn State “got over that hump” to reach the goal this senior class set four years ago.

“What we’ve done with the program in just these four years, I know it’s just going to continue once we leave,” Janecke said. “It’s going to continue to get better and hopefully remain a powerhouse.”

Our energy + the best facilities in college hockey ⚡️🏒

It’s what makes this program different.#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/17Cw5CPAcK
— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) March 19, 2026

When Janecke made her Penn State debut in 2022, she scored two goals and had an assist. The Nittany Lions played the Badgers and split the season-opening series. A lot has changed these four years for Penn State, and she’s scored a lot more goals, too.

“She’s a rising tide that’s lifted all the boats,” Penn State coach Jeff Kampersal said. “She came in, not only on the ice, but off the ice and set the standards in the weight room and connecting teammates along the way.”

It was an immediate shift for Penn State, and Janecke drew comparisons to Carmelo Anthony for how he took over Syracuse’s basketball program. That Wisconsin series was just the start.

“You’ve just never seen somebody just come in and take the program over,” Kampersal said.

All eyes on Janecke

Tessa Janecke and Taylor Heise of the United States celebrate winning the women's ice hockey gold medal vs. Canada. — Tessa Janecke (22) and Taylor Heise (27) of the United States celebrate winning the women's ice hockey gold medal against Canada during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson wants his team to “play free,” but it will be paying special attention to Janecke. Wisconsin, the defending NCAA champ, plays in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, a conference that also includes Ohio State, which plays Northeastern in Friday’s other semifinal. So Janecke won’t be the first star Wisconsin has scouted.

“When she’s on the ice, you have to be aware, and we’ve been in that situation a number of times [against] Minnesota [and] Ohio State, so hopefully some of the things that we’ve gone through, we’ve grown, we’ve developed,” Johnson said. “It’s more about what we do than what Penn State does.”

Wisconsin has the best power-play percentage in the country with 42 goals. Penn State ranks sixth with 10 fewer. The game will be a physical battle relying heavily on clean special teams play and staying out of the penalty box.

“We know that Wisconsin will be a speed change like the first five minutes of the game,” Kampersal said. “We need to come strong at them, but we know that they’re obviously skilled and quick and deep.”

While Penn State has one U.S. Olympian on its roster, Wisconsin has four, including defender Caroline Harvey, who was named MVP of the women's tournament at the Winter Olympics.

High-pressure calmness

Tessa Janecke scores the golden goal for the United States! @usahockey | #WomensWorlds pic.twitter.com/t63wLvAnir
— NHL Media (@NHLMedia) April 20, 2025

Janecke performs when the pressure is at its highest. In 2025, she scored the golden goal in Team USA’s 4-3 win over Canada at the IIHF World Championships. She played 15 minutes in the nail-biting overtime battle against Canada.

At Penn State, Janecke brings a calm presence. She knows how to handle the big moments and can command the locker room. Janecke isn’t very talkative and chooses her words wisely but can “calm the room” when the moment gets tense.

“That’s what I try to do here; just get us to believe in ourselves that we are a good team, that we belong,” Janecke said.

Winning faceoffs helps keep the team at ease, too. Janecke ranks 16th nationally in faceoff wins despite missing eight games for the Olympics.

“When she wasn’t around, players stepped up in her absence,” Kampersal said. “But without her, we ended up chasing the puck a lot and having to go get it. With her, we start with the puck a lot of the time.”

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