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Wisconsin women's hockey duo earns weekly conference honors

For the first time this season, the Wisconsin Badgers claimed WCHA weekly awards
Kedrick Stumbris|
Wisconsin teammates mob right wing Laila Edwards (10) after her goal in the first period of the women's hockey Frozen Four national championship game Sunday, March 23, 2025, at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Wisconsin teammates mob right wing Laila Edwards (10) after her goal in the first period of the women's hockey Frozen Four national championship game Sunday, March 23, 2025, at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. | Dave Kallmann / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

With a pair of 5-0 victories over the Maine Black Bears, Wisconsin women's hockey continued its winning ways this weekend.

The reigning national champion Badgers celebrated its national championship hardware from the 2024-25 season during the home opener and collected some new awards along the way.

Wisconsin (4-0-0, 2-0-0 WCHA) dominated its non-conference opponent, outshooting Maine 105 to 41 in the two-game series. Because of the Badgers' suffocating forecheck, the Black Bears spent much of the weekend in their own zone, blocking another 40 attempted shots from UW along the way.

A well-balanced offensive attack, featuring eight different goal scorers for Wisconsin, and a standout goaltending performance, led to a pair of Badgers earning weekly honors.

2025 All-American forward Laila Edwards named Defender of the Week

Wisconsin alternate captain Laila Edwards earned WCHA Defender of the Week honors after a four-point weekend. In the series opener, Edwards scored twice for her first multi-goal game of the year.

The Ohio native added a pair of assists in the series finale as Kelly Gorbatenko scored on a rebound following an initial shot by Edwards, and a defender-to-defender pass led to a goal on Laney Potter's shot from the point.

Edwards led the country in goals and earned first-team All-American honors playing at forward as a junior. To begin her senior year, Wisconsin women's hockey coach Mark Johnson has played Edwards at defender in three of UW's four games.

On a loaded Badgers roster, Johnson wants to ensure he is playing Edwards "where she can be most effective."

"At the end of the day, it's just hockey," Edwards said Friday on her versatility in the lineup. "So, just go out and play. And I think I have fun playing both, so wherever they put me, I enjoy it."

Wisconsin women's hockey goaltender Ava McNaughton earns WCHA weekly award

At the very back of the defense, goaltender Ava McNaughton was perfect on the weekend. The junior stopped all 38 shots she faced, helping Wisconsin shutout Maine, before rookie net-minder Rhyah Stewart closed out the final 9 minutes and 24 seconds of game time.

McNaughton, the reigning national goaltender of the year, has helped the Badgers earn shutout victories in three of four games thus far.

Her two complete game shutouts are tied for the national lead alongside fellow WCHA goalies Hailey Hansen of the Minnesota State Mavericks, and Ève Gascon of the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs.

After recording a shutout of the Bemidji State Beavers on opening weekend, McNaughton said, "It's really hard to get a shutout in our conference. So, it is nice to get the ball rolling and just kind of have that confidence and kind of get the juice going."

The top-ranked Badgers are currently preparing to welcome No. 4/5 Minnesota Duluth to Madison this weekend for a two-game series. Game 1 is Saturday October 11, at 11 a.m. Puck drop is scheduled in Game 2 for Sunday, October 12 at 1 p.m.

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Kedrick Stumbris
KEDRICK STUMBRIS

Kedrick Stumbris has covered the Wisconsin Badgers since 2022 with a focus on the Badgers football, men's basketball, and women's hockey programs. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2018 with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science.

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