With two wins over a ranked opponent, Minnesota captured all 15 first-place votes for the unanimous selection at the top of the USCHO.com Division I Women’s Poll. The Gophers defeated No. 5 St. Lawrence in two straight games, 5-2 on Friday and 7-2 on Saturday. The losses were the first of the year for the Saints, while Minnesota remains unbeaten at 13-0-1, the only team in the country without a loss.
Providence turned in a surprising 5-2 win over No. 4 Dartmouth, and as a result climbed three spots to No. 6.
Princeton enters the poll this week at No. 10, with a win and a tie against last-week’s No. 10, Mercyhurst. The Lakers dropped into the “receiving votes” category.
Next week features a number of top flight conference match-ups, including No. 4 Dartmouth against No. 5 St. Lawrence and No. 2 Harvard goes to No. 7 Brown in a game that is hard-fought each year. But the highlight is No. 3 Minnesota-Duluth invading the new Ridder Arena for a pair of games against No. 1 Minnesota in a fight for WCHA supremacy.
The USCHO.com Poll is compiled by U.S. College Hockey Online, and consists of 15 voters, including 11 coaches of Division I programs and four women’s hockey writers.
