PC Women’s Hockey Team To Face Defending Champion Wisconsin in First NCAA Tournament Game since 2005

-The No. 7 seed Providence College Friars will face the No. 2 seed University of Wisconsin in the team’s second-ever NCAA appearance on Tuesday, March 16 at 2:00 p.m. EST in Erie, Pennsylvania.
-The Friars earned an at-large bid after being defeated by No. 1 seed Northeastern University, 6-2, in the Hockey East Tournament Championship on March 6. The championship game appearance was the team’s first since 2012.
-It will be the ninth meeting all-time between Providence and Wisconsin, with the Badgers holding a 6-1-1 advantage in the series.
-Wisconsin swept a two-game series in San Jose, Calif., from Oct. 2-3, 2015 in the most recent meetings between the two programs.
-Providence will look to defeat the Badgers for the second time ever to advance to the NCAA Frozen Four for the first time in program history.
-This is Matt Kelly’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament while at Providence.
-Providence went 2-5-0 against the other teams in the NCAA field this season, picking up two wins over Boston College.
-This will serve as Providence’s second appearance in the NCAA Tournament, since the team’s first tournament appearance in 2005.
-During Providence’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the Friars were defeated by Minnesota, 6-1, in the Quarterfinal round in Minneapolis, Minn.

Providence (NCAA Rank) 2020-21 Univ. Wisconsin (NCAA Rank)
2.50 (15th) Goals Per Game 3.89 (3rd)
2.15 (17th) Goals Against Average 1.67 (6th)
32.10 (10th) Shots Per Game 32.06 (11th)
14-64 (.219) (5th) Power Play 10-55 (.182) (10th)
52-62 (.839) (22th) Penalty Kill 30-34 (.882) (12th)
.466 (21st) Faceoff % .499 (16th)

Scouting the Friars
Sara Hjalmarsson (Bankeryd, Sweden) and Caroline Peterson (East Falmouth, Mass.), a junior class duo, lead the charge offensively for the Friars. Hjalmarsson has 17 points (five goals, twelve assists) and is +9 on the season, the highest on the team. The Friars are 11-0-0 when Hjalmarsson registers a point. Peterson spearheads the Friars’ in goals with eight, adding seven assists for 15 points. She has netted two game-winning goals and assisted on two more. Peterson has also tallied three power-play goals, the team high. Freshman Brooke Becker (Orchard Park, N.Y.) has 14 points on the season with three goals and 11 assists. Sophomore Bailey Burton (Bloomington, Minn.) leads the Friars in shots on goal (69). 18 different Friars have points on the season and 13 players have recorded at least one goal. Providence boasts a 21.9% power play percentage, ranking second in the nation.

Sandra Abstreiter (Freising, Germany) has made 19 starts in net. The senior netminder ranks fifth in the nation in both shutouts (4) and saves (520). Abstreiter ranks in the top 20 in both goals-against average (2.05) and save percentage (.927). She holds the sixth most wins in the nation with 12.

Series History vs. Wisconsin
The Friars and Badgers will meet for the first time since October 2015. In the last meeting, Wisconsin completed a series sweep over Providence in San Jose, Calif., defeating the Friars 5-1 in game one, and again in game two, 8-1, the following day. It will be the first-ever meeting between the teams in postseason play and the team’s fourth meeting at a neutral site. In eight meetings between Providence and the University of Wisconsin, the Badgers hold the advantage, 6-1-1.

Scouting the Badgers
The Badgers are coming off of a 2-0 weekend, defeating No. 5 University of Minnesota, and No. 3 Ohio State in the WCHA Tournament Championship. On Saturday, March 6, Wisconsin defeated Minnesota, 5-3, at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, Minn. Freshman Makenna Webster led the Badgers with two goals. On Sunday, March 7 Wisconsin defeated No. 3 Ohio State in overtime, 3-2, in the WCHA Tournament Championship at the Ridder Arena, claiming the team’s fifth WCHA tournament title in the last seven years. After a scoreless first period, Daryl Watts registered two goals for the Badgers in the second period versus Ohio State’s one goal. Sophie Jaques rallied back for Ohio State and tied the game with a goal halfway through the third period, sending the teams into overtime. In the first 42 seconds of overtime Lacy Eden netted the game-winning goal.

The Badger’s +40 goal margin is third in the NCAA, while their power play (18.2%) and penalty kills (88.2%) both rank in the top 12. They are fourth in the nation in points scored (184) and sixth in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 1.67 goals per game.

The University of Wisconsin is 25-8-0 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and holds five national titles (2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2019). In 2019, the Badgers shutout no. 2 Minnesota, 2-0, in the final game to claim the national championship. While playing USCHO Top-10 teams, University of Wisconsin holds a 155-98-34 all-time record.

Who To Watch
Daryl Watts, WCHA Player of Year, is second in the nation in points (33) with 17 goals and 16 assists. The senior forward is tied for first in the nation in goals and hat tricks, having recorded one hat trick this season against St. Cloud State on Jan. 22, contributing to her team’s 10-0 win. Wisconsin is also lead by junior Sophie Shirley (10-12-23) and senior Brette Pettet (10-9-19).

In goal, senior Kennedy Blair ranks twelfth in the NCAA is goals-against average (1.70), and fifteenth in save percentage (.931). Blair leads her league in wins (14) and shutouts
(5).

Seven Badgers earned All-WCHA honors in the post season. Daryl Watts, Grace Bowlby and Sophie Shirley earned first-team All-WCHA honors. One Badger was named to the second-team and three more earned third-team honors. The Badgers enter the week with the fifth most wins in the nation (14) and seventh in power play goals (10). They finished the season with a 14-3-1 record over and a 12-3-1 conference record.

The NCAA Bracket
In addition to Providence and Wisconsin battling on Tuesday, the second game at the Erie Insurance Arena will feature the No. 3 seed Ohio State Buckeyes and the No. 6 seed Boston College Eagles. The winners from each game will play for the right to go to the Frozen Four on Thursday, March 18.

Success Against Other Top Teams
The Friars are 2-5 in the season against the other top-three teams in the Hockey East standings – Northeastern (0-4), Boston College (2-1). Both Northeastern and Boston College are appearing in the NCAA Tournament as first seed and sixth seed, respectively. This is the first time in Hockey East history that three teams have made the NCAA Tournament.

Five With 10+ Points
Five Friars have posted double digit points this season – Sara Hjalmarsson (17), Caroline Peterson (15), Brooke Becker (14), Claire Tyo (11), and Bailey Burton (11).

Hockey East Awards And All-Stars
Hockey East announced its annual award winners and all-stars on March 27. Sara Hjalmarsson (Second Team), Lauren DeBlois (Third Team), and Sandra Abstreiter (Third Team) earned all-star recognition. Additionally, Brooke Becker and Claire Tyo were named to the Hockey East Pro Ambitions All-Rookie Team.

Kelly Vs. The WCHA
It will be just the fifth meeting against a WCHA for Matt Kelly’s Friars since his arrival in 2018-19. Providence is 3-0-1 against WCHA conference foes during that span.

For more updates on the Providence women’s hockey program, follow the team on Twitter and Instagram @PCWHockey.