No. 1 Warriors Sweep Senior Weekend; Finish Regular Season Unbeaten

FREMONT, Neb. – Playing for the final time on home ice this season, No. 1-ranked Midland University hosted the University of Utah over the weekend inside Sidner Ice Arena. On a weekend when the 2024 graduating class was honored, the Warriors took care of business and capped off an unbeaten regular season. Midland earned a 5-0 shutout over Utah on Saturday and then added a 2-0 win on Sunday. The Warriors finish the regular season with an impressive 27-0-2 record.

SATURDAY: Midland 5, Utah 0

In the opening period, the Utes found themselves in a jam several times as they were whistled for three first-period penalties. The Warriors took advantage of two of their powerplay chances. Keagan Shearer and Kamryn Hayhurst found Darbi Poole for the first score at the 4:48 mark following a tripping call.

After a second tripping penalty on Utah, Callie Maguire found the back of the net. Jaicee Huberdeau and Kayla Flanigan assisted on the goal with 6:14 left before the intermission. Through the first 20 minutes of play, Midland held a commanding 24 to 7 advantage in shots on target.

In the second period, a roughing call on the guests gave the Warriors an early powerplay chance. At the 2:34 mark, Ally Rakowski lit the lamp with a score from Flanigan and Huberdeau. The goals continued as Flanigan scored at the 7:08 mark of the second off a feed from Hayhurst and Rakowski.

With just under four minutes to go before the final intermission, Midland struck for a third goal of the period to go up 5-0. Rakowski scored her second of the game off assists from Flanigan and Hayhurst.

In the final period, Utah had some early chances as Midland was sent to the penalty box twice in the first minute. Playing 5 on 3, the Utes were unable to break the barrier put up by the Warriors in front of Hannah Stone. With a comfortable lead on the scoreboard, Midland skated out the final 20 minutes for a 5-0 senior day victory.

Stone was strong in net for the Warriors with 16 saves on the day. Utah's netminder had a good game as well but was peppered with 69 shots on the afternoon, saving 64 attempts.

Before Saturday's game, Kayla Flanigan, Jenna Grosdidier, Paige Henderson, Maxine Mass, and Ally Rakowski were honored along with their families who were in attendance.

SUNDAY: Midland 2, Utah 0

Coming off the win on Senior Day, the Warriors looked to complete the weekend sweep on Sunday as they took the ice one final time at Sidner Ice Arena. The opening period saw long stretches without any whistles as the teams played clean hockey after an opening-minute penalty by the Utes.

Unlike the first game, Midland was unable to take advantage of the extra attacker and didn't find the back of the net until the minutes of the period. With just under four minutes before intermission, Brynn Tosh collected the puck in the neutral zone. She skated up the right side and flipped it in past the goalie as she moved across the slot.

With time winding down in the first, the Warriors struck once more. This time it was Jenna Grosdidier finding the back of the net with two seconds on the clock. As she was backing away from the net, she fired it on target as she knew time was nearing the end of the period. Darbi Poole was credited with the assist as she initially collected the puck in front of the net.

With the two-goal lead in its pocket, Midland didn't press for goals in the second or third periods. Utah on the other hand did. While they didn't get many attempts to the level of the goalie, they had a few close calls with a puck going off the post and another sliding past a hole in the defense.

Playing in front of Andrea Schreiber, who got the start in goal, the Warriors completed the shutout and the series sweep, 2-0. For the game, Midland put 47 shots on net while limiting Utah to just 10.

Schreiber went the distance in between the posts, collecting 10 saves in the win.

With the sweep, Midland (27-0-2) wraps up its first-ever unbeaten regular season. They'll transition quickly into the postseason with the Women's Midwest Collegiate Hockey (WMCH) Tournament set to begin this coming Thursday. The Warriors, who will learn their seeding on Monday, will travel out to Lynchburg, Virginia for the conference tournament beginning on Thursday. The field of the WMCH tourney will be one of the best as all eight of the teams find themselves ranked in the ACAH Women's Division 1 Top 15 Poll.