DULUTH, Minn. – The top-ranked Wisconsin women's hockey team took down No. 6 Minnesota Duluth, 3-1, on Friday afternoon in the semifinals of the 2025 WCHA Final Faceoff at AMSOIL Arena. 

Kelly Gorbatenko, Caroline Harvey and Emma Venusio all scored for the Badgers (34-1-2) to propel UW to the WCHA title game on Sunday. Harvey ended the game with two points, passing Sis Paulsen for the most points in school history by a defender with 131 career points. 

The Bulldogs (21-14-2) opened the scoring 2:56 into the first period but the Badgers equalized less than four minutes later. Gorbatenko came crashing in on the net alongside a UMD defender and Laney Potter sent it in on net that Gorbatenko deflected in. The first period ended level at 1-1.

Wisconsin outshot the Bulldogs 14-9 in the second frame and it was enough to give the Badgers their first lead of the game. Ava Murphy stole the puck at neutral ice and passed it to Laila Edwards, who brought the puck into the zone. Casey O'Brien found Harvey in the slot who took a shot that deflected off Bulldogs' netminder Ève Gascon and went in net to give the Badgers a 2-1 lead heading into the second intermission.

Venusio capped off the scoring for UW, scoring her first collegiate goal with just over a minute left. Harvey assisted the goal, 

Ava McNaughton made 22 saves and stopped the final 21 shots she faced to earn her 32nd win of the year. 

Notes of the Game

• Wisconsin will advance to its 16th WCHA Championship in school history and are 10-5 in previous title games. 
• Harvey now has 14 points in 13 career games against the Bulldogs. 
• UW has won the last seven games against UMD. 
• Harvey's 57 points this year are tied for the sixth most in NCAA history by a defender with Minnesota's Megan Bozek, who had 57 points in the 2012-13 season. 
• The Badgers outshot the Bulldogs 42-23. 
• Casey O'Brien got her 80th point of the season, becoming the first NCAA women's hockey player to reach 80 points since Daryl Watts did so during the 2017-18 season. 

Straight from the Rink
Head coach Mark Johnson
On the hard-fought win:
"You do enough to move on to the next game and that's what you gotta do this time of year. We have the championship game to look forward to tomorrow."

On a strong matchup in No. 6 UMD:
"We had more opportunities than we had in previous games against UMD. The second period we were forechecking well, creating opportunities, we could've had three to four goals [that period] if some bounces had gone a different way."

Junior defender Caroline Harvey
On the importance of maintaining momentum in the game:
"Shift after shift, passing it off and keeping that momentum going, we can't let up and we have to keep that momentum going for the full 60 minutes."

On breaking the record for career points by a blueliner:
"It doesn't change anything and, honestly, I credit that all to my teammates. I couldn't do it without them and it's not something that I care about at all. All I'm focused on is bringing that trophy back to Madison."

Sophomore forward Kelly Gorbatenko:
On having Laney Potter back on the roster:
"Laney made a great play to getting to the net on that first goal. She's a key piece of this team and so we're glad to have her back."

Up Next: The Badgers will face the winner of Ohio State/Minnesota on Saturday in the championship game of the 2025 WCHA Final Faceoff. Puck drop is set for 2 p.m. at AMSOIL Arena in Duluth. Fans can watch the action in the Madison area on Me-TV and fans can listen to it on 1070 The Game.