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LGHL Inside the numbers of a championship season for Ohio State women’s hockey

Inside the numbers of a championship season for Ohio State women’s hockey
Brett Ludwiczak
via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


2024 NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Championship

Photo by Gil Talbot/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

The Buckeyes put together a season that will be tough for future Ohio State teams to top.

Ohio State’s women’s ice hockey team has now won two national titles in the last three years. The Buckeyes were dominant throughout the season, and there were so many players that contributed to the best season in program history. To look back on just how great the Buckeyes were, we’ll dive into some of the important numbers from the 2023-24 season.


2


With their 1-0 win over Wisconsin on Sunday afternoon, Ohio State’s women’s ice hockey team won their second national championship in program history. The first national title came two years ago, when the Buckeyes beat Minnesota-Duluth. The only thing separating the Buckeyes from a three-peat is a 1-0 loss to Wisconsin in last year’s title game.


35


The win over Wisconsin in New Hampshire gave Ohio State their 35th win of the season, which is a school record. The Buckeyes actually set the program record for wins in a season on Friday, when they beat Clarkson in the Frozen Four semifinal. The win over the Badgers just set the mark even higher for future Ohio State teams to try and top.

In each of the last three seasons, the Buckeyes have finished the season with a new school record for wins in the season. The 2021-22 season saw Ohio State finish with 32 wins, last season the Buckeyes notched 33 wins, and this year they improved on last year’s mark by two wins.


16


Starting with a 6-2 win in Columbus against St. Cloud State on Dec. 2, Ohio State reeled off 16-straight wins, shattering the previous school record of 10-straight victories. The winning streak came to an end in the final game of the regular season, when Wisconsin beat the Buckeyes 4-2 in Madison.

During the winning streak, which spanned over two months, Ohio State outscored their opponents 88-16.


201-51


It wasn’t often when Ohio State was pushed to the limit this season, as they outscored their opponents 201-51. During the season, the Buckeyes had four games where they scored at least 10 goals, and another four games where they scored at least eight goals. Of their 35 wins on the season, just seven of those victories were by less than two goals.


12


The season-high for goals in a game by Ohio State this season was when they scored 12 goals on Feb. 16 against St. Thomas. Seven different Buckeyes scored in the game, with four Ohio State players recording multiple goals in the blowout victory.


5


There were five games this season where Ohio State players recorded a hat trick. The first three-goal game came in October against Minnesota-Duluth, when Hadley Hartmetz completed the feat. The first of two Joy Dunne hat tricks during the season came less than a month later, when the freshman notched her first career hat trick on Nov. 3 against Bemidji State, and the other came against Minnesota in January.

The other two came in February. Jenna Buglioni also had a hat trick against Bemidji State, followed by Hannah Bilka’s three-goal performance in the 12-1 rout of St. Thomas.


24


The 24 goals scored by Joy Dunne this season were the high mark on the team. The 2024 Julie Chu Rookie of the Year took a little time to get comfortable on the ice, as she didn’t score her first career goal at Ohio State until her ninth game, but she caught fire as soon as the puck hit the back of the net, scoring three goals in the game.

Dunne’s final goal of the season was the most important, as her goal against Wisconsin on Sunday ended up being the deciding factor in a national championship victory for the Buckeyes.


48


While Dunne led Ohio State in goals this season, the overall point leader for the Buckeyes was Hannah Bilka, who finished the season with 48 points.

After playing four seasons at Boston College, Bilka transferred to Ohio State following last season. The graduate student didn’t take long to get acclimated to her new surroundings in Columbus, as she had starting with her third game in scarlet and gray she posted at least two points in six straight games.

Bilka’s best performance of the season came in early February, when she was credited with four points in the 11-1 win over Bemidji State.


22


Of Ohio State’s 35 wins this season, 22 of them came with Raygan Kirk between the pipes for the Buckeyes. The number of wins that Kirk was in goal for this season set a new school record. Kirk was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Frozen Four.


10


The final start of the year for Kirk came in the national title game against Wisconsin. By not allowing the Badgers to score, Kirk recorded her 10th shutout of the year, which was the most in the country this season. Keeping opponents off the scoreboard in so many of her starts this season, Kirk finished the year with a 1.05 goals against average.


7


The NCAA Tournament appearance was Ohio State’s seventh in school history, with all of them coming under head coach Nadine Muzerall. In six of those seasons the Buckeyes have won at least 20 games.

With the tremendous foundation Muzerall has built during her time in Columbus, those numbers are only going to increase over the years. There’s no question that Muzerall has turned Ohio State into the premier women’s ice hockey program in the country right now.

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LGHL Bucketheads Podcast: Ohio State’s season ends, and an interview with One Shining Podcast’s Tate Frazier

Bucketheads Podcast: Ohio State’s season ends, and an interview with One Shining Podcast’s Tate Frazier
justingolba
via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

We talked all things Sweet 16 with Tate, and got his thoughts on the Buckeyes and Jake Diebler.

“Bucketheads” is LGHL’s men’s basketball podcast, hosted by Connor Lemons and Justin Golba. Every episode, they give you the latest scoop on the Ohio State Buckeyes and everything else happening in the college hoops world.



Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio



On episode 114 of the Bucketheads podcast, we discuss the sad fact that the season is over. The Ohio State men’s basketball team lost to the Georgia Bulldogs, 79-77, in the quarterfinals of the NIT, and a tumultuous season has come to an end. Plus, we talk about the transfer portal and the next steps for the Buckeyes.

We also have an interview with Tate Frazier, host of the One Shining Podcast, about all things Sweet 16. We discuss UNC, the ACC, Kentucky, Ohio State, Jake Diebler and much more in an hour-long talk with Tate. Ball knowers can’t miss this one!

Make sure to like, subscribe, comment, and leave a review on the show!



Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter:
@BucketheadsLGPN

Connect with Connor:
Twitter:
@lemons_connor

Connect with Justin:
Twitter:
@justin_golba

Connect with Tate:
Twitter:
@tatefrazier

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LGHL Celeste Taylor’s time with Ohio State women’s basketball doesn’t end with transfer regret

Celeste Taylor’s time with Ohio State women’s basketball doesn’t end with transfer regret
ThomasCostello
via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Following Sunday’s defeat, the graduate senior reflected on the decision to move to the Buckeyes

Since the start of Celeste Taylor’s NCAA career, the guard has been on the court. From starting 28 of the Texas Longhorn’s 30 games in her freshman year through Sunday’s Ohio State loss to the Duke Blue Devils, Taylor showcased prominently in all three stops as a college student athlete.

At each stop, Taylor picked up fans who were drawn to a player who made a name for herself on the defensive side of the ball. The 5-foot-11 New York native grabbed conference attention too, earning accolades across three different Power Five conferences. Taylor was a member of the 2020 Big 12 All-Freshman team and Defensive Player of the Year in both the ACC and Big Ten.

Sunday’s loss in the Second Round was especially tough for Taylor, from the outside looking in. That’s because one of those stops was in Cameron Indoor Stadium, with the Duke Blue Devils. Losing to a former team, in an upset, gives all the appearances of a moment creating a swirling vortex of regret in the mind of Taylor.

“I wouldn’t have made any other decision my fifth year,” said Taylor following the defeat. “I’m very happy on the decision I made.”

Last season, after Duke lost to the Colorado Buffaloes in another Second Round upset defeat, Taylor thought she was done with college basketball. Fresh off the ACC Defensive Player of the Year award and one of three finalists for National Defensive Player of the Year, it was a good time to shift to the next level.

That changed with Taylor deciding to stick with Duke for one final season, after graduating with her undergraduate degree. However, when an assistant coach who became like family left for the South Carolina Gamecocks, Taylor made the decision to enter the transfer portal.

The move upset fans of the Blue Devils, but Taylor did what every coach is allowed to do. It ended with a landing spot in Columbus, with the goal of winning a National Championship.

Ohio State fell five games short of its goal.

“We didn’t play our best today. Obviously, the want was there, but it was just the little things that we couldn’t pull through on,” said Taylor. Credit to Duke, they came in strong in the second half. And once they took that lead, it was hard for us to come back.”

Taylor’s career isn’t ending full of individual accomplishments and an empty team trophy cabinet. The guard’s work is evident in each previous stop.

With the Longhorns, Taylor had one season to be a freshman, learning the ropes from her teammates. At the end of the campaign, head coach Karen Aston was dismissed from her position, replaced by Mississippi State head coach Vic Schaefer. That added team leader to the underclassmen’s responsibilities, as only one of five returning players.

Fast forward to the next season, fresh off a transfer to Duke, and Blue Devils head coach Kara Lawson had Taylor to help impart her team tactics and culture into a team who lost most of its players due to a cancelled 2020-21 season after four games.

All-in-all, Taylor had four coaches in five years. Of that handful of seasons, three times Taylor was somebody coaches relied upon to be a leader for her teammates. The results of that foundation building is evident.

Texas entered the 2024 NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed, with two teammates from Taylor’s final year at Texas excelling for the Longhorns. They enter the Sweet Sixteen with Duke, a team returning five of Taylor’s former teammates who had its part in ending the guard’s collegiate career.

What made the defeat more difficult for Taylor was that she couldn’t see it out to the end. The guard fouled out in the fourth quarter, playing 28 minutes in the 75-63 defeat.

“Definitely hard,” said Taylor. “Obviously, I want to be out there with them every chance that I get. So it was definitely tough.”

Alongside fellow Buckeye graduate senior Rebeka Mikulasikova, the two could only watch Ohio State’s season come to an end. The silver lining in all of it is that future members of the Scarlet and Gray have learned from their time with a player who looks out for her teammates.

Watch Buckeyes games throughout the season, and Taylor is there helping give perspective to teammates like Cotie McMahon after picking up a technical foul against the Iowa Hawkeyes on March 3. Taylor’s also there after the small plays, helping teammates up or getting helped up after a chase down block or taking contact inside the paint.

When future leaders like McMahon and guard Taylor Thierry take the helm next season as head coach Kevin McGuff’s team leaders, they’ll be better for it because of the one season Taylor had in scarlet and gray.

Even in the preseason, when Taylor came to the team late following a summer of 3X3 basketball with Team USA, the guard showed not only leadership, but genuine caring that’s become part of a foundation that may help get Ohio State back into contention for the Sweet Sixteen next season.

Despite her former ACC teammates moving on to Portland for the next round of March Madness, Taylor’s confident was confident about one thing following the end of her college basketball playing days.

“I’m honestly proud to say that I came to be a Buckeye.”

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