Nadine Muzerall recorded her first hat trick of the season and Minnesota converted on three of nine power-play opportunities en route to a 5-2 victory over Wisconsin on Friday.
Meghan Hunter got the Badgers on the board first when she scored her 22nd goal of the season at 5:48 of the opening period on the power play.
Muzerall scored the game’s next two goals, both on the power play. The first came with 16 seconds remaining in the first period and the second, the only goal of the second period, came at 14:22 of the middle frame.
Hunter scored at even strength at 5:19 of the final period to tie the game, but Muzerall completed her hat trick just 26 seconds later. Ambria Thomas then scored at 8:05 and Laura Slominski scored on the power play with 7:58 left in the game.
The Gophers, after being outshot 8-5 in the opening period, held a 27-16 advantage over the final 40 minutes and a 32-24 edge for the game. Erica Killewald had 22 saves for Minnesota while Jackie MacMillan had 27 for Wisconsin.
