No. 2 Warriors Skate Past Minot State; Advance to Conference Title Game

LYNCHBURG, Va. – Coming off a late-night win on Thursday, second-seeded and No. 2-ranked Midland University took the ice against its longtime rival, third-seeded and No. 4-ranked Minot State University, in the Women's Midwest College Hockey (WMCH) Tournament on Friday evening. As has been the case over the past several seasons, the Warriors and Beavers were evenly matched on the ice throughout. An early powerplay goal at the start of the third, along with an empty-net goal, punched the Warriors ticket to the title game with a 2-0 victory.

It was a defensive battle throughout as both sides weathered each other's offensive attacks. After a scoreless first period, Midland came out more aggressive in the second but Minot State held firm in front of its netminder.

With a powerplay chance carrying over from the second, the Warriors won the faceoff and quickly got it into the attacking zone. After cycling the puck around, a diagonal pass went through the slot untouched. Maxine Mass attempted to slap home an up-close shot but the puck veered to the left side of the goalie. There waiting with a wide open net was Callie Maguire who sent the puck into the back of the net to break the 40 minutes of scoreless hockey. Jenna Grosdidier and Mass picked up the assists for the goal that came 44 seconds into the third.

After the score, the teams returned to their defensive stalemate. Each time it looked like the Beavers were close to finding an answer, Hannah Stone was there to cover the puck up for the save.

With time winding down in the third, Minot State pulled its goalie with just over a minute to go. The extra attacker led to a quick shot but Stone was there to corral the puck. As the clock dipped under 20 seconds to play, Jaicee Huberdeau sent the puck toward the net from just inside the neutral zone. The puck landed softly and slid into the far post, bouncing in for the empty-net insurance goal with 14 seconds remaining. The Warriors would close out the contest, winning the faceoff and tying the puck up in front of their bench.

For the game, Stone was tested 15 times and collected saves on each attempt to earn her fifth clean sheet of the season. The Warriors outshot the Beavers 32 to 15 in the game.

Midland (29-0-2) will await the winner of the other semifinal between Liberty vs Maryville in the WMCH Championship. Puck drop for the title game is set for 2:30 p.m. ET (1:30 p.m. CT) in Lynchburg at the LaHaye Ice Center.