U Better Believe It

Kehler, Vis lead Mavericks to historic weekend sweep over No. 7 Minnesota

by Dan Myers
Issue date: 1/23/07 Section: Womens Sports

Entering their weekend series with No. 7 Minnesota, the Minnesota State women's hockey team (13-11-1 overall, 9-10-1 WCHA) had a chance to make a statement. They had won five straight games, but none over teams with a winning record.

But after a monumental 3-2 win over the Gophers Friday night at All Seasons Arena, the Mavericks finished off their first-ever sweep of the Gophers with a 4-3 win Saturday, taking four points from a team in front of them in the standings and extending their winning streak to seven games, the longest in program history - a statement heard loud and clear by everyone in the college hockey world.

MSU began their previous long streak with a pair of wins over three-time defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth to begin the 2003-04 season. That sweep was a high-water mark for the program, and one which the team has been striving to return to for three years.

For seniors like Shera Vis - who scored the game winner in both victories - and Sammy Miller, this weekend ranks right up there with that UMD series as one of the highlights of their collegiate careers.

"It's amazing," Miller said. "There are no words for it. I couldn't stop smiling."

And although the boxscore won't indicate a huge weekend for the defenseman Miller, Mavericks assistant coach Dan Lichterman and head coach Jeff Vizenor could not stop talking about her play along the blueline.

"I thought she was unbelievable," Vizenor said. "Always making plays, always putting her stick in the lanes. She doesn't get a lot of recognition, but she made great plays."

"I just did my job and played defense as best I could," Miller said.

Vis' game-winners highlight a surprising senior campaign for the forward. The goals were her eighth and ninth of the season, already extending a career high. She also added an assist on the weekend, her eighth, which ties a career high.

But perhaps the most valuable asset has been her stellar two-way play. Solid on both ends of the rink, the captain showed her versatility this weekend by playing nearly flawless defense on the blue line in power play situations.

"She was everywhere," Vizenor said. "She was going everywhere we asked her to. Great senior leadership there."

But it wasn't just the seniors chipping in this weekend.

Sophomore Maggie Fisher scored a goal each day, including a laser into the top right corner in Saturday's game to make it 2-0 Mavs. She also added an assist.

Junior netminder Britni Kehler won both games, saving 40 shots on Friday and 36 more on Saturday.

"She's our rock," Vis said.

"Brit is amazing," added Miller. "She came up big a lot of times. She played really well."

The Maverick special teams - more specifically their power play - also came up big during the weekend.

After going 1-for-6 in Friday's win, the Mavericks converted on three of nine chances with the man advantage Saturday, including a key conversion by junior Jodi Helminen with just under four minutes to play in the second period.

After serving a minor penalty for checking, Helminen exited the box and took the puck from a Gopher forward. She raced down the ice on a 2-on-1, but chose to take the shot herself and beat UM goalie Kim Hanlon five-hole to give the Mavs a 3-2 lead heading to the third.

The Gophers tied the game just over a minute into the third before Vis buried the game's final goal with 15:29 to play. Like the day before, the Mavericks weathered a furious Gopher attack during the last four minutes to hold onto the win.

"I'm proud of our kids," Vizenor said. "They battled and competed. We wanted to play hard for 60 minutes each night, and for the most part, we competed like crazy for 120 minutes."

Minnesota has lost five of six games since a 10-game winning streak in November and December. It's once comfortable lead over fourth-place Ohio State and fifth-place MSU has dwindled to four points and six points, respectively.

For the Mavericks, however, catching the Gophers for third or the Buckeyes for fourth may prove daunting. UM plays three of their next four games at home against the two worst teams in the WCHA - North Dakota and St. Cloud State. OSU follows a home series against Minnesota-Duluth this weekend with a road trip to UND.

MSU, meanwhile, travels to Madison this weekend for a two-game set with No. 2 Wisconsin. Both games in the Friday-Saturday series will begin at 2:07 p.m. and will be followed by the MSU-UW men's game each night.

The Badgers swept Minnesota State at All Seasons Arena earlier this season, and have never lost to the Mavericks, holding a 29-0-1 record over MSU since the two schools began playing each other during the 1999-2000 season.

Dan Myers is the Reporter Sports Editor