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Penn State Women's Hockey Seeks More Fan Support After First Frozen Four

The Nittany Lions set a Frozen Four attendance record in their overtime loss to Wisconsin.
Amanda Vogt|
Penn State hockey player Tessa Janecke goes for the puck during a Nittany Lions hockey game.
Penn State hockey player Tessa Janecke goes for the puck during a Nittany Lions hockey game. | Penn State Athletics

STATE COLLEGE | The crowd was clearing out of Pegula Ice Arena on Friday night, but Penn State’s Tessa Janecke remained on the ice. She was the last to skate off. Penn State’s historic season came to a screeching halt less than a minute into overtime, as defending national champ Wisconsin defeated the Nittany Lions 4-3 in their first Frozen Four appearance. 

The Badgers went to the power play after Penn State’s Kendall Butze was called for boarding 42 seconds into overtime. Eight seconds later, the Badgers’ Kristin Simms had a clear shooting lane, opted not to pass and instead fired a shot past Penn State goaltender Katie DeSa, sending Wisconsin back to the national championship game.

The Badgers dogpiled in front of their bench while the Nittany Lions skated to the other side of the ice in disbelief. Janecke skated alone, processing the moment. As her teammates exited the ice, she hugged each one. 

“I told them how proud I was of them and to just be a part of this team,” Janecke said. “Obviously I’ve given everything I can to this program for four years. To just have that support, getting to kind of sign off was awesome and just a testament to not only myself but what we were able to do here in four years.”

The 5,176 fans at Pegula Ice Arena for the national semifinal set a Frozen Four attendance record and nearly tripled Penn State's home record, which it set at Beaver Stadium in January. Penn State had the home-crowd advantage, but Wisconsin fans traveled well, with patches of red scattered throughout the arena. 

“Playing in front of that crowd tonight was, kind of like Tessa’s game, it was next level,” Penn State coach Jeff Kampersal said. “It was awesome.”

Janecke jolts crowd, scores twice

It was a physical battle between Penn State and Wisconsin, with players being separated by referees on multiple occasions. Ten players were sent to the penalty box. 

In the first period, those penalty minutes were costly for the Badgers, with Penn State scoring twice within the first 15 seconds of each power play. Janecke struck first with a shot off the right side for her 25th goal this season and 200th career point. Abby Stonehouse had the other power-play goal for Penn State, redirecting Maddy Christian’s pass underneath Wisconsin goaltender Ava McNaughton.

“We are a low-penalized team, and we had three in the first period,” Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson said. “[Penn State] capitalized on it right away, and so if I’m their coaching staff and players, what a great start for them. You get the building involved, you get your legs going, a lot of excitement.”

Penn State led 2-1 after the first period, but Wisconsin held the Nittany Lions to only three shots in the second period. The Badgers pestered DeSa and regained the lead with Laila Edwards scoring her second of the game and Adela Sapovalivova’s wrap-around goal. 

The Nittany Lions regained more control in their offensive zone in the third period, but McNaughton swatted off the shots fired her way. But with Penn State trailing 3-2 with five minutes left, Janecke prodded Pegula to erupt in deafening noise. 

Nicole Hall sent a pass up the middle of the ice, where Janecke was wide open. As she skated one-on-one with McNaughton, it was like the crowd knew what would happen. Janecke initially faked the shot before burying the puck in the back of the net to force overtime.

“I kind of blacked out,” Janecke said. “I feel like maybe I heard [the crowd noise spike] a few times if I had the puck, but I just want that to continue. I want that for this team, for this group and the program going forward. People should be excited about Penn State women’s hockey.”

'One of the best atmospheres'

Penn State reached the Frozen Four for the first time during a school-record 33-win season that included a 3-0 victory over UConn last weekend in front of 1,615 fans. That was the fifth-largest indoor crowd in program history. In January, 1,838 fans watched the Nittany Lions beat Robert Morris 3-0 in the first ice hockey game at Beaver Stadium. Until Friday, that was the largest home crowd for a Penn State women’s hockey game. 

“This is one of the best atmospheres that I’ve ever played in,” said Janecke, who in February won a gold medal at the Winter Olympics with Team USA. “I just wish that it continues next year and just in general, like realizing the sport of women’s hockey is growing every day. 

“It wasn’t just about the wins on the scoresheet or the points, but we grew women’s hockey in Hockey Valley and Penn State in general. If we could just inspire one girl to want to play hockey or anybody for that matter, then we did our job here.”

While Penn State made the Frozen Four, its program isn’t viewed the same as Wisconsin or Ohio State. The Nittany Lions compete in Atlantic Hockey America, a conference with only one other ranked team this season besides Penn State. 

“I think we get a lot of slander for our conference and whatnot, but it doesn’t matter what conference you’re playing in,” Janecke said. “To go the whole season with only five losses is something that’s not easy to do. … I think it’s a testament that we can compete with anybody. I don’t care what the stat sheet says, I don’t care who’s on your team. If we’re willing to out-compete you, then that’s what we’re going to do.”

Hockey has grown at Penn State, especially after the men’s team reached the Frozen Four last season. But the women’s team struggles to see that support. It doesn’t help that the team's games are often scheduled at times when students are in class, or when big football weekends at the start of the season take priority. 

“I think the marketing we can try to reconfigure,” Kampersal said about how games are scheduled. “I think we can maybe look into arranging game times or whatnot, keep trying to think of ways to get people into the seats. But the product was awesome. If you’re a fan of hockey, then you really enjoyed tonight.”

Sunday’s championship game at Pegula Ice Arena is a rematch of 2025, when Wisconsin defeated Ohio State 4-3 in overtime. Ohio State defeated Northeastern 5-0 in the other semifinal Friday. 

Johnson, who has brought the Badgers to eight national championships and the past four Frozen Fours, said Kampersal and Penn State have something to build on based on this turnout. 

“That’s what I told Jeff after the game. Hopefully from this point forward, their crowds start to increase,” Johnson said. “We saw that in Madison. You see it in some of the facilities that we play in throughout the season. Once people come in and see it for the first time, … hopefully what they saw tonight is enjoyable and they’ll bring other people to the [next] game and maybe you’ll see that on a regular basis.”

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Amanda Vogt
AMANDA VOGT

Amanda Vogt is a senior at Penn State and has been on the Nittany Lions football beat for two years. She has previously worked for the Centre Daily Times and Daily Collegian, in addition to covering the Little League World Series and 2024 Paris Paralympics for the Associated Press. Follow her on X and Instagram @amandav_3.

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