Wisconsin Wins 2026 NCAA Women's Title

Claire Enright scored the tiebreaking goal with just over six minutes remaining in regulation, and the University of Wisconsin won its second straight NCAA Division I women's hockey national title with a 3-2 victory over archrival Ohio State University on Sunday in State College, Pa. It was the fourth straight meeting in the national title game between Wisconsin and OSU, with the Badgers now having won three of those.

Kelly Gorbatenko and Laney Potter staked Wisconsin to a 2-0 lead before the game was eight minutes old, with Adéla Šapovalivová assisting on both goals for the Badgers. The score remained unchanged until Kassidy Carmichael and Joceyln Amos tallied just over two minutes apart early in the third period for the Buckeyes, setting the stage for Enright's heroics with the final goal of her college career.

Ava McNaughton stopped 34 shots for the Badgers (35-4-2 overall), whose top-ranked power play went scoreless in six opportunities. Hailey MacLeod made 31 saves for the Buckeyes (36-5-0), who won 43 of 71 faceoffs overall but saw their 10-game winning streak dating back to Feb. 13 snapped.

It is the ninth national title overall for Wisconsin, all since 2006 with head coach and Badger alumnus Mark Johnson at the helm, and the most among NCAA schools all-time since the NCAA women's Division I tournament began in 2001. OSU, which won this year's WCHA title game over Wisconsin, was seeking its second national crown in three years, and third overall.

Also for Wisconsin, senior blueliner Caroline Harvey took home the Patty Kazmaier Award earlier in the week as the top NCAA Division I women's hockey player this season. The New Hampshire native, who helped the U.S. to a gold medal at last month's 2026 Olympic Winter Games, finished her final collegiate campaign with 18 goals and 46 assists for 64 points in just 33 games. She is the seventh Badger to win the Kazmaier Award, the most of any school, since its inception in 1998.

Badgers Win 2025 Women's Hockey NCAA Title

Kirsten Simms scored on a penalty shot with 18.2 seconds remaining in regulation, then converted a rebound less than three minutes into overtime to lift top-ranked Wisconsin to a 4-3 victory over No. 2 Ohio State in the 2025 NCAA Division I Women's Hockey national championship game at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. 

It is the eighth national title all-time for the Badgers, the most-ever in women's college hockey history, and their second in three seasons. It was also the eighth national title for head coach and former NHL forward/1980 U.S. Olympic hero Mark Johnson, who now has 667 career wins, all at his alma mater.

Simms finished with two goals and an assist on the afternoon, and scored the tying goal after Wisconsin was awarded a penalty shot after an official video review determined that an OSU player had covered a loose puck in the Buckeye crease with a glove. She then put home the rebound of a Lacey Eden shot just 2:49 into the extra session to end it.

Eden recorded two assists for Wisconsin (38-1-2 overall), which overcame a 3-1 deficit early in the second period, while Laila Edwards had a goal and an assist for the Badgers, who also won both the WCHA regular-season and tournament titles. Joy Dunne, who notched the game-winning goal for OSU (29-8-1) in last year's national title game, opened today's scoring with a shorthanded goal in the first nine minutes of regulation. Amanda Thiele finished with 31 saves in net for the Buckeyes, while Ava McNaughton made 20 stops for the Badgers.

It was the third straight season that OSU and Wisconsin, the top two teams in the NCAA and WCHA, had met for the national title. Wisconsin won in 2023, and OSU in 2024, both by 1-0 scores. The Buckeyes were seeking their third NCAA title in school history. The 2026 women's Division I Frozen Four will be played at Penn State's  Pegula Ice Arena in State College, Pa.

OSU Wins 2024 NCAA Women's Hockey Title

Joy Dunne's goal with just over seven minutes remaining in regulation was all Ohio State needed in a 1-0 victory today over Wisconsin in the 2024 NCAA Division I women's hockey national title game at the Whittemore Center in Durham, N.H. The Buckeyes avenged last year's loss to the Badgers by the same score in the national championship game, along with a 6-3 loss to Wisconsin on March 9 in the 2004 WCHA championship contest.

Boston College transfers Hanna Bilka and Cayla Barnes assisted on the goal by Barnes, the WCHA Rookie of the Year, her 24th score of the 2023-24 season. Raygan Kirk stopped all 26 shots she faced for Ohio State (35-4-0 overall), while Ava McNaughton made 27 stops for Wisconsin (35-6-0). 

It was the second national title in three years for OSU, both under head coach Nadine Muzerall. The Buckeyes also defeated Minnesota-Duluth and Clarkson University in the NCAAs this month, before winning their rematch on Sunday against the Badgers.

OSU outshot Wisconsin, 28-26, on the afternoon, while also winning 34 of 63 faceoffs. There were no penalties called, and no power plays in the game. Next year's NCAA Frozen Four will be held at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, where the Buckeyes will look to make the national semifinals for the fifth straight season.

Badgers Top Buckeyes in No. 2/No.1 Women's Meeting

In a battle of the current top two teams in NCAA Division I women's college hockey, it was the second-ranked squad that came out on top this time.

No. 2 Wisconsin overcame a two-goal deficit with four unanswered tallies in a 4-2 victory over visiting No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday evening before 2,273 on-lookers at LaBahn Arena in Madison. It was the Badgers' first win in four tries over the Buckeyes this season, following a 1-0 triumph over OSU in last season's NCAA title game in Duluth, Minn.

After Kenzie Hauswirth staked OSU to a 2-0 lead with two goals in the first 20 minutes, Casey O'Brien got the Badgers on the board early in the second stanza. O'Brien then tied the contest early in the third period, before Laila Edwards scored twice in the final eight minutes, including an empty-netter set up by O'Brien, to seal the victory.

Amanda Thiele finished with 20 stops for the Buckeyes (29-3-0 overall, 26-2-0 WCHA), while Ava McNaughton made 33 stops for the Badgers (29-5-0, 23-5-0). OSU still leads second-place Wisconsin by nine points for the top spot in the 2023-24 WCHA standings.