As the Minnesota women's hockey team woke up at 4 a.m. to catch a plane back to Minneapolis Monday morning, inconsistency was on their minds. After all, it was the reason they hadn't gotten home on Sunday,...

After winning the national championship last March, the Minnesota women's hockey team got used to being on top. And all the baggage that comes with it. "Being the defending champions means everyone is...

In an awards sweep comparable to that of the "Titanic" Oscar domination, the Minnesota women's hockey team stole the show for the second week in a row as the WCHA honored two more Gophers for outstanding...

For the first time this season, the normally physical Minnesota women's hockey team had a penalty-free game Saturday night against Bemidji State at Mariucci Arena. According to junior Tracy Engstrom, the...

In a WCHA season that shows Minnesota isn't part of a two-team league anymore -- the Gophers were beaten by an unranked team and Wisconsin came within one point of overtaking first place -- last weekend's...

After Minnesota's win over Wisconsin solidified its first place lead in the WCHA conference by three points, it would seem the Gophers could start getting comfortable in the role of league leader. And...

After what would be defined in "Muzzy-speak" as a shaky start to the season, senior and last year's national goal-scoring leader Nadine Muzerall was honored as the WCHA's player of the week for her four...

Last February, when senior Nadine Muzerall was leading the nation in goals, power play goals, power play points and game-winning goals, she had an easy way of dealing with the attention. She ignored it. "In...

Before either Minnesota's (9-2-1, 8-1-1 WCHA) or Wisconsin's (9-3-2, 6-2-2 WHCA) women's hockey teams took the ice last weekend, it was pretty clear who the winner was. Kenny Rogers. The Gambler had the...

This weekend, while the rest of us are thinking about turkey and pumpkin pie, the Minnesota women's hockey team (8-2-0,7-1-0 WCHA) will be focused on an entirely different kind of food, one known to cause...

For the second time this season the Minnesota women's hockey goaltenders are facing a loss in goal. Only this time there's little hope for a replacement. The Gopher's goalie woes began last spring when...

Minnesota women's hockey coach Laura Halldorson knew she wanted La Toya Clarke on her team the moment she saw her play. The only problem: Clarke was several years away from even considering a collegiate...

After missing as many games as she had played, senior Nadine Muzerall wasn't having the sequel she hoped for after last season's record breaker. Looking back at the end of Minnesota's championship year,...

After two solid 4-0, 8-0 shutout wins against rival Minnesota-Duluth this weekend, Gophers senior Ambria Thomas was sick of answering the same question: Was it any different taking on the defending WCHA...

After dominating the WCHA conference since its inception four years ago, the Minnesota women's hockey team was consistently one of the top programs in the country, as well as the strongest team in the...

After losing 3-2 to second-ranked Brown on Saturday, the Minnesota women's hockey team had one thing on its mind: defeating Harvard on Sunday. But the zambonis had something else in mind. After both machines...

An already bizarre season got a little stranger for the Minnesota women's hockey team this weekend when they traveled east to take on Brown and Harvard. Let's check the facts: First, the defending national...

Despite outshooting Brown 38-32 and leading for much of the game, the Minnesota women's hockey team couldn't repeat its national championship win over the Bears Saturday, losing 3-2 in overtime. Fourth-ranked...

If the Minnesota women's hockey team thought the 2000-2001 season would be spent reveling in its championship title, the schedule had something else in mind. This weekend the Gophers make the first of...

After missing two weeks of hockey action, senior forward and last year's national point-scoring leader Nadine Muzerall is ready to return to the ice. Muzerall was first sidelined with a concussion sustained...

With the women's hockey season just three weeks old, coaches and veteran players alike figure it will take time for the freshmen to get accustomed to playing at the college level. Rookies get short shifts...

After the Minnesota women's hockey team suffered a disappointing 4-2 loss to Ohio State last Sunday, Minnesota State-Mankato became the unfortunate victim of a team out for vengeance. The Gophers beat...

Watching the Minnesota women's hockey team suffer a devastating loss at the hands of Ohio State University last weekend, it was hard to believe you were watching the defending national champions play. And...

Last weekend's 4-2 upset of the defending national champion Minnesota women's hockey team by Ohio State left a lot of questions on the minds of players and fans alike. The most important of which seemed...

Hell has officially frozen over in the WCHA. With both defending National Champions Minnesota and defending WCHA champions Minnesota-Duluth toppled by teams with losing records last year, the message was...

With three years of 11-0 wins, easy domination of almost all in-state teams and two month-long winning streaks, it would be easy to blow off Minnesota's 4-2 loss to a second-year program like Ohio State. Afterall,...

Something strange is going on in the WCHA. The teams are ... winning. Of the seven teams in the conference, only St. Cloud State -- swept by Minnesota last weekend -- has yet to win a game. For the Gophers,...

If a first-ever NCAA tournament this season and six new teams created since Minnesota's inception in 1997 are any indication, women's hockey is growing faster than one of Nadine Muzerall's slapshots. Further...

Just as Glen Mason and the Gopher football team are entertaining thoughts of the Rose Bowl, the Minnesota (7-7 overall, 4-4 Big Ten) soccer team's chances of post-season play are becoming significantly...

The Gophers women's hockey team both began their WCHA season and ended their dominating WCHA legacy in the same weekend. Though the Gophers swept St. Cloud State 4-1, 5-4 the series proved a stark contrast...

Despite much-improved fortunes, senior Erin Holland is dreading this weekend's match against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee -- and it has nothing to do with their imposing 3-0 Midwestern conference...

For most soccer players, the number on the back of their jersey is nothing more than a way to identify them on the field and tally team statistics. But for freshman Kecia Lee, it's a target -- for expectations,...

Looking at the statistics from Minnesota's 34-9 preseason win over Baylor three weeks ago, Tellis Redmon's name is conspicuously absent after the first half. After fumbling the ball early against the Bears,...

A turnaround, even late in the season, is always welcome. And for the Gophers soccer team, with just four regular season games left on its schedule, it's been long overdue. Last weekend, coach Barbara...

Just when the Gopher soccer team's luck seems to be turning around, they are forced to face a long-running team curse: road games. Of the six games it has played on the road this season, Minnesota (2-3...

When All-American javelin thrower and track and field co-captain Nicole Chimko decided last spring she needed a break from her first sport, she went straight to Barbara Wickstrand. Neither a travel agent...

After more than two weeks and 352 game minutes without a goal, the Minnesota soccer team finally ended their three game scoring slump this weekend with a 2-0 win over Ohio State. Had the goal been five...

In every sport, every team in the Big Ten has a strong conference rival no one expects them to beat, even at their strongest. For football it's Wisconsin, for hockey it's North Dakota, for basketball,...

Two weeks ago, the Gopher soccer players were all smiles. They had just beaten Iowa 5-1 after losing two consecutive games to seemingly sub-par non-conference teams. Then, it appeared the team was out...

After their game Friday against Northwestern was cancelled due to the threat of lightning, a black cloud followed the Gophers north to Michigan where they dropped a 4-0 game to the Wolverines on Sunday. Despite...

If revenge is a dish best served cold, the Minnesota soccer team will settle for lukewarm. This weekend the Gophers return to Evanston, Illinois, and the demons that still haunt them -- in the form of...

Long ago, Minnesota was declared the hockey capital of the United States. And though the home of American hockey is no longer Minnesota's Iron Range, the Twin Cities will host another hockey milestone...

Call it a rollercoaster. Call it the inevitable result of a new coach and a new system. Call it whatever you like, but don't claim to understand. Minnesota trounced Iowa but lost to Illinois this weekend,...

As if cruising to an easy championship in their home invitational wasn't enough, the Gophers volleyball team set several records as they improved their record to 11-0 over the weekend. The tournament began...

Things don't always go the way one plans. Just ask coach Glen Mason and the Minnesota football team. But the Minnesota gridders were not the only Gophers team left shaking their heads following an unexpected...

Minnesota's soccer team starts every pre-game warm-up wearing shirts reading "do or do not, there is no try." Senior Laurie Seidl takes the message to heart. Through one strong homestand and a weak road...

Heading into their first road games and last non-conference series, the Gophers kickers are planning to clean up their game and add some wins to their record before the Big Ten opener against Iowa next...

After losing eight letter-winners and a coach, the Gophers soccer team might feel more like a fledgling program instead of team entering its eighth season. For new coach Barbara Wickstrand, it's the perfect...

At a Big Ten school that has 22 varsity sports with more than 500 participants, it's easy to understand how an individual athlete could feel like a mouse. But when you're an athlete in a club sport, especially...

The biggest rumor circulating around campus the past couple of months is now a reality. Brock "The Rock" Lesnar is ready to be a professional wrestler. Lesnar, the 2000 NCAA heavyweight champion and Minnesota...

Being a Gopher golfer in Minnesota, where snow threatens the ground eight months out of the year, it can be hard to know when your off-season is. With a schedule that stretches through the worst winter...

At a Big Ten school that has 22 varsity sports with more than 500 participants, it's easy to understand how an individual athlete could feel overlooked. But when you're an athlete in a club sport, especially...

Attending the Olympic trials, as Gopher athletes in four sports have done this summer, is an honor. Making the team is a dream come true. So far, only one athlete, wrestler Garrett Lowney, is headed for...

In women's hockey, the Gophers and Minnesota-Duluth are strong rivals and almost equally matched in talent. Back in December, the Bulldogs trounced Minnesota at Mariucci Arena, only to have the Gophers...

It appears the Gophers wrestling team is out to prove they are the hardest-working team in Minnesota. And it's summer. Just two weeks after junior heavyweight Garret Lowney made the Olympic Greco-Roman...

While multiple Gophers athletes will participate in Olympic trials throughout the summer, freshman wrestler Garrett Lowney is the first to earn a confirmed spot on the Olympic team. One of eight champions...

It would seem that 1999 was sprinter Tom Gerding's year. He was Big Ten champion in the 400-meter dash broke several school records and won every race he was in. But if you ask Gerding, who this season...

Weyerhauser Aquatic Center in Federal Way, Wash., is a long way from Golden Gopher country for senior diver Dan Croaston. But despite the distance, Croaston is still in pursuit of something golden in the...

It's been a breakthrough year for women's athletics at the University. Two new stadiums were dedicated, there were Big Ten and national titles to brag about, and five teams competed in NCAA tournaments. Now,...

The summer seems like the perfect time for the Minnesota alpine ski team to take a break and relax. After all, they've spent much of the winter pounding the hills around the Midwest competing against area...

The biggest rumor circulating around campus the past couple of months is now a reality. Brock "The Rock" Lesnar is ready to be a professional wrestler. Lesnar, the 2000 NCAA heavyweight champion and Minnesota...

IOWACITY -- In the all-out point grab that was the women's Big Ten track and field championships, the Gophers landed just shy of first place with 118 points, 17 points behind first-place Indiana. It was...

IOWACITY -- If the Gophers had it their way, the Big Ten outdoor track and field championships would have ended after the first two days of competition and they would be champions for the third year in...

The Drake Relays is considered one of the premiere meets in the country, with 18,000 screaming fans and over 700 different teams. So why was senior Eric Pierce, the Big Ten steeplechase champion and 1999...

DES MOINES, Iowa -- The Drake Relays is most-known for its many sprint and distance relay events. But the Gophers women's track and field team left Des Moines on Saturday after dominating the field events,...

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Freshman Chris Dixon, appearing at the Drake Relays for the first time, accurately summed up one of track and field's biggest events after he finished the triple jump. "Someone telling...

As far as track and field goes, the Minnesota men and women are headed to the Goliath of all meets this weekend, the Drake Relays. It began 91 years ago in Des Moines as a small meet between four schools....

Setting a school record and earning three first-place finishes, the Gophers men's track team dominated the Arizona Elite meet and proved they are ready for the Drake Relays next weekend. "I think things...

With only one week left before the Drake Relays the Gophers men's track and field team again scatters across the country to try and improve times and set personal records in the warm weather. Senior Eric...

Only a few short years after the NCAA decided to add pole vault to women's track and field, women are taking on yet another all-male event, the steeplechase. The event, also known as "plastic cross country,"...

At the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, Calif., the slogan of the meet is "where the world's best athletes compete." With a motto like that, and standing records set by Carl Lewis, Gail Devers and Jackie Joyner...

Coach Gary Wilson has big plans for the women's track team as they head to Walnut, Calif., for the Mt. SAC Relays. "We didn't compete last week, so we're well-rested and trying to set some school records,...

It usually seems in track and field that there is one standout athlete in each event -- one awesome hurdler, one impressive pole vaulter, and one distance demon. But in one of the most strenuous events,...

The Gophers men's track and field team showed it could hold its own at the prestigious Hayward Relays on Saturday with multiple top-10 finishes in six events. And one of the best finishes was a second-place...

After a successful opening of the outdoor season last week in Arizona, the Gophers men's track team is ready to head to what assistant coach Steve Plasencia calls the "hotbed" of track and field: Eugene,...

It's strange how much can change in a few weeks time: Coach Laura Halldorson and her players can laugh now they hold the American Women's College Hockey Alliance title. Winning the national title was quite...

It's about redemption. Redemption is the first word that comes to junior Nadine Muzerall's mind when she thinks of Minnesota-Duluth, the team the Gophers lost the WCHA tournament to three weeks ago. They're...

Ending the first half of the season with a set of 5-1, 4-0 losses to top-ranked Dartmouth is not the way coach Laura Halldorson wants the year 2000 remembered. Especially when she says her team is in a...

In the past, a matchup between the Minnesota women's hockey team and Minnesota State-Mankato meant an easy steamroll for the Gophers. A blowout. A 10-1 domination. And looking at the statistics from last...

If anyone doubted that the WCHA championship match between Minnesota and Minnesota-Duluth was a deep-seated rivalry, they just needed a look at one statistic -- the Gophers had as many penalties as shots...

If Minnesota goalie Crystal Nicholas looked bored in the first game of the WCHA tournament, no one could blame her. Nicholas faced only six shots on goal in the entire game while Minnesota State goalie...

Minnesota coach Laura Halldorson is feeling a little worried. It's only natural -- the first ever WCHA women's hockey tournament begins today. The tournament, made up of the seven WCHA teams, comes down...

It's the battle of the unbeatens this weekend as Minnesota -- riding high on a 17-game win streak -- takes on third-ranked Wisconsin, that brings eight straight wins of their own to the matchup at Mariucci...

After dominating WCHA rival Minnesota-Duluth last weekend, the Gophers mistakenly took a break against St. Cloud State and were greeted with a much improved team over the weekend. After beating the Huskies...

After an intense matchup last weekend against rival Minnesota-Duluth, the Gophers are still basking in the glory of their series with the WCHA frontrunner. Minnesota beat and tied Duluth last weekend and...

DULUTH -- Minnesota-Duluth is a women's hockey team riddled with Olympians from three different countries. The Bulldogs are also the only team in the WCHA to beat the Gophers. So you can see how a freshman...

DULUTH -- The Gophers women's hockey team was all but fighting for the WCHA regular season title this weekend at Duluth. But the Gophers fell just short of their goal in a fast-paced series that leaves...

For a two-time All-American who has scored 25 goals in the past 12 games and leads the nation in scoring, a slump in play should be easy to notice. Easy to notice, but hard to face. Junior Nadine Muzerall,...

With the promise of pizza to lure dorm dwellers to Mariucci Arena, the Minnesota women's hockey team provided the entertainment by dishing out an 8-3 beating of Minnesota State. Eight hundred and four...

A little confidence goes a long way in hockey. Ohio State came to Minneapolis a different team this weekend after tying first place Minnesota-Duluth a week ago -- and it showed. Friday night saw Ohio State...

Some people say miracles happen. The Minnesota women's hockey team says hard work pays off. For the first time in the three-year history of women's hockey, the Gophers beat perpetual powerhouse New Hampshire...

The Minnesota women's hockey team is known for several things: producing 10-0 and 11-1 wins, a player scoring five goals in a record-setting performance and not allowing goals against them during power...

The absences of injured defenders Winny Brodt and Megan Milbert didn't stop Nadine Muzerall. The junior performed as if possessed by both players, scoring a school-record five goals and seven points in...

If it seems like the Minnesota women's hockey team just played Bemidji State, that's because they did. But a lot has changed in the 10 days since the two teams met. Since their last meeting, the Gophers...

The women's hockey team put the painful 7-0 loss to the U.S. National Team on Jan. 7 further in the past by sweeping both Bemidji State and Minnesota State in a five-day period over break. Despite the...