Ohio State, Wisconsin, Colgate, Clarkson in Women's Frozen Four at UNH: What to know

DURHAM — A national champion will be crowned Sunday at the Whittemore Center as the NCAA women's hockey Frozen Four has arrived.

The top two teams in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association — Ohio State and Wisconsin — and the top two teams in the Eastern College Athletic Conference — Colgate and Clarkson — make up this year's Frozen Four field.

“It’s amazing, we’re so thrilled to host this event with the popularity of women’s hockey soaring,” UNH Director of Athletics Alison Rich said. “This is a great opportunity to showcase this game and UNH to our families and our fans.” 

How to watch NCAA women's hockey Frozen Four

No. 1 seed Ohio State will face No. 4 Clarkson in Friday's first semifinal, starting at 4 p.m. No. 2 Wisconsin faces No. 3 Colgate in the late semifinal, scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. The winners will play for the national championship Sunday at 4 p.m.

Friday's semifinal games will be streamed on ESPN+, while Sunday's championship game can be seen on ESPNU.

Wisconsin beat Ohio State, 1-0 in last year's national championship. Those two teams have combined to win the past four NCAA tournaments. Wisconsin winning in 2019, 2021 and 2023, and Ohio State winning in 2022.

“We’ve demonstrated that we can host major NCAA events, and we’re pretty good at it,” said Rich, who is looking forward to her first Frozen Four since taking over her role at UNH in July 2022. “We have an amazing staff. I am so proud of them and the things they’re able to accomplish. We have great facilities that we’re able to showcase, but it’s really the people.” 

Getting to know Ohio State (33-4-0)

For the fourth straight season Ohio State finds itself in the Frozen Four. One more win will set an season-high for the Buckeyes in its storied history.

Ohio State goalie Raygan Kirk is one of the best in the country. She ranks second in Division I in goals-against average (1.11), and posted her Division I-leading ninth shutout of the season in the Buckeyes' regional win over Minnesota Duluth.

Offensively, the Buckeyes score a nation's best 5.30 goals per game. The team has 14 players with at least 20 points, led by Hannah Bilka (22 goals, 25 assists, 47 points) and Jennifer Gardiner (18-26-44).

Getting to know Wisconsin (34-5-0)

Wisconsin is looking to become the first team to successfully defend its title for the first time since Clarkson went back-to-back in 2017 and 2018.

The Badgers already lead women's hockey with seven titles and are making their 15th Frozen Four appearance, tying Minnesota for the most all time.

Wisconsin has three of the country's top five scorers in Kirsten Simms (74 points), Casey O'Brien (71) and Britta Curl (61). Simms, the WCHA Player of the Year, has had multiple points in 24 of 37 games this season and has eight game-winning goals, second in the nation.

Getting to know Colgate (32-6-1)

Colgate is the only team in this year's field that is still looking for a national championship. The Raiders have reached the Frozen Four just one prior time, losing to Clarkson in overtime of the 2018 championship game.

Colgate has won its last six games by a combined score of 27-4. Nationally, the Raiders rank third in offense (4.74 goals per game) and is tied for second in defense (1.23 goals allowed per game).

Getting to know Clarkson (33-4-2)

Clarkson's quadruple-overtime win over Minnesota in the regionals was only the second NCAA women's hockey tournament game to last that long. Clarkson leads the country in defense (1.21 goals per game) and has the best penalty kill (92.1%).

Senior Michelle Pasiechnyk is one of three finalists for national goaltender of the year, with a 1.29 GAA, .945 save percentage and 25 wins. The Knights have won three national titles (2014, 2017, 2018).

How to get tickets for NCAA Women's Frozen Four at UNH 

Single-session ticket prices are $25 for adults and $15 for seniors (65+), youth (12 and under), military and college students.  

Tickets for all three games are $40 for adults and $25 for seniors, youth, military and college students.  

Tickets for groups of 20 or more are priced at $20 for all-session and $10 for single-game tickets. 

Tickets can be purchased at https://unhtickets.universitytickets.com. For more information on group opportunities or skybox rentals, e-mail unh.tickets@unh.edu or call the ticket office at (603) 862-4000.   

Information from ESPN.com was used in this report.