Wisconsin's O'Brien Wins 2025 Kazmaier

The 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner as the top player in NCAA Division I women's ice hockey is University of Wisconsin fifth-year forward Casey O’Brien.

O'Brien, a graduate student from Milton, Mass., leads the Badgers in scoring this season with 26 goals and 62 assists for 88 points in 40 games, the highest-scoring season of her five-year NCAA career. She is also the top scorer in Wisconsin hockey history, men and women, all-time with 94-175—269 points in 179 outings, and the sixth Badger to win the Kazmaier Award, the first since 2017. 

O'Brien's Wisconsin teammates, Laila Edwards and Caroline Harvey, were the other two finalists this year for the award, which is named for the late Princeton University star and all Ivy League honoree from the 1980s. 

Wisconsin (37-1-2 overall) will now face WCHA rival Ohio State (29-7-3) on Sunday (4 p.m. ET, ESPNU) in the national title game for the third straight year.

OSU, Wisconsin to Meet Again for NCAA Women's Hockey Title

For the third year in a row, the NCAA Division I women's ice hockey national title game will pit Ohio State against Wisconsin.

Defending national champion and second-ranked OSU advanced to Sunday's title game (3 p.m., ET, ESPNU) with a 4-2 win over Cornell today in the first NCAA semifinal at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. Joy Dunne scored the only two goals of the third period for the Buckeyes, who also got a goal and two assists from Makenna Webster. 

No. 1 Wisconsin (37-1-2 overall) punched its ticket to Sunday with a 6-2 victory over host Minnesota in tonight's nightcap. Laila Edwards scored three goals for the Badgers, while Caroline Harvey tallied one goal and set up three others. Both Edwards and Harvey, along with teammate Casey O'Brien, are finalists for the 2025 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award as the nation's top women's player, with the winner to be announced tomorrow (NHL Network, 12:30 p.m. ET).

OSU (29-7-3) advanced to this year's Frozen Four by routing St. Lawrence in the quarterfinal round, while Wisconsin bested Clarkson. The Badgers also won this year's WCHA tournament, while the Buckeyes were eliminated by Minnesota in the conference semifinals. Wisconsin won this year's head-to-head WCHA regular-season series with OSU with two wins, one loss and one tie (shootout win by OSU).

The Buckeyes beat the Badgers in last year's national title game in Durham, N.H, while Wisconsin edged OSU in the 2023 championship in Duluth, Minn., with both games decided by 1-0 scores. OSU is seeking its third national title ever, and third in four years, while Wisconsin is vying for a record eighth NCAA crown overall, and fourth in the last six seasons.