For the fifth straight year, Ohio State’s women’s hockey team is hosting a regional round in the NCAA Tournament.
The Buckeyes are hoping this postseason run progresses like the last four, with Nadine Muzerall’s team playing in the national title game. Ohio State has alternated wins and losses in the final game of the college hockey season, winning it all in 2022 and 2024.
To kick off their quest for a third national championship in program history, the Buckeyes host Yale this even at OSU Ice Rink.
Following their shutout of Minnesota last Thursday in the WCHA Final Faceoff semifinal, Ohio State and Wisconsin battled on Saturday in St. Paul to be the top-seed in the NCAA Tournament, with the Buckeyes looking for their third WCHA Final Faceoff title in their sixth appearance in the championship game.
After two scoreless periods of hockey, Lacey Eden gave Wisconsin a 1-0 lead halfway through the third period.
Hilda Svensson would tie the game five minutes later with her 18th goal of the season. Jordan Baxter’s goal two minutes later would end up being the game-winner, clinching the conference tournament crown for the Buckeyes.
Emma Peschel assisted on both Ohio State goals in the victory, giving her 27 helpers on the season, which is second-most on the team. With the victory over the Badgers, Ohio State is ranked number one in the country for the first time since the final poll of the 2023-24 season.
Svensson now has 50 points on the season, which is the most on the team entering the NCAA Tournament, three points ahead of Joy Dunne. The freshman from Sweden is just the second Ohio State rookie with 50 points in the season, and is three points away from tying the program record for most points in a freshman season.
Svensson is one of four Buckeyes with at least 40 points this season. Along with Svensson and Dunne, Jocelyn Amos and Sloane Matthews have accumulated at least 40 points during the 2025-26 campaign.
There’s no question who will be starting in goal for Ohio State the rest of the season. After backing up Amanda Thiele last season, Hailey MacLeod has been outstanding in net for the Buckeyes this year.
The Minnesota Duluth transfer is 24-3 this season, ranking third in the country with a .889 win percentage, and her 1.50 goals against average ranks fourth in women’s college hockey. MacLeod only allowed three goals across Ohio State’s four games in the WCHA Tournament.
To book a spot in the Frozen Four, the Buckeyes will have to defeat Yale tonight at OSU Ice Rink. This marks Ohio State’s fifth meeting all-time with the Bulldogs.
The programs squared off in the 2022 Frozen Four semifinals, with the Buckeyes winning 2-1. Following the victory over Yale, Ohio State beat Minnesota Duluth in the title game to win the first national championship.
Oddly enough, Yale beat Minnesota Duluth on Thursday in Columbus to advance to Saturday’s game against the Buckeyes. The only goal of the game came at 16:15 of the second quarter off the stick of Molly Boyle, which was her 12th goal of the season.
Samson Frey stopped a career-high 37 shots from the Bulldogs to earn her sixth shutout of the season. The win was Yale’s second NCAA Tournament victory in program history.
Leading the Bulldogs in points this year is Jordan Ray, who has 33 assists and 50 points. Carina DiAntonio’s 26 goals are the high mark on the team, and her 48 points are just two behind Ray.
Molly Boyle, Stephanie Stainton, Gracie Gilkyson, Naomi Boucher, and Hannah Meyerhaeuser round out the Yale skaters with at least 20 points this season. As a team, Yale has outscored their opponents 125-70.
The winner of tonight’s game will book their spot in next weekend’s Frozen Four in University Park, PA at Pegula Ice Arena, where they’ll battle the winner of today’s regional final between Minnesota and Northeastern on Friday March 20th. A win by the Buckeyes would give them their fifth consecutive Frozen Four appearance.
Tonight’s game between Ohio State and Yale is scheduled to start at 6:00 p.m. ET at OSU Ice Rink and can be seen on ESPN+.
