A program-changing duo.

That’s how Gophers women’s gymnastics head coach Jenny Hansen described the impact fifth-years Lexy Ramler and Ona Loper have had on the program of which she has been at the helm for eight seasons.

“They’re similar in that they’re very focused. School is really important to them,” Hansen said of Ramler and Loper. “Then, gymnastics is a close second, and the social life piece is important, but it never got in the way of what they wanted to accomplish.”

Hansen and her coaching staff had high hopes for Ramler coming into college. She was the 2017 Junior Olympic national champion on beam and coined a skill called “The Ramler.” They knew she had the potential to be one of the greatest gymnasts the program has ever seen.

For Loper, Gophers women’s gymnastics assistant coach Geralen Stack-Eaton found her through recruiting and told Hansen they needed to travel and see her in her hometown of Bluffton, S.C.

Despite being a 2017 Junior Olympic national champion on floor and the runner-up on beam in the 2016 Junior Olympics, the Gophers were the first and only program to offer Loper a spot on a collegiate roster. Hansen felt she was a “diamond in the rough” finding for the program.

Loper took the opportunity to continue her gymnastics career with the Gophers after a campus visit. For Ramler, she wanted to stay in-state, close to her hometown of St. Michael, Minn.

When Ramler and Loper met for the first time, Loper was intimidated by Ramler, saying she was “an elite person” and “didn’t know how to approach her,” while Ramler was not “super drawn” to Loper.

Fast forward five years, the duo’s gymnastics careers are complete as they leave the program as best friends and two of the top gymnasts it has ever seen.

Ramler and Loper combine for the top 14 best all-around scores in program history while also accounting for 31 of the program’s top 38.

Ramler was the 2021 AAI Award winner, a three-time Honda Award finalist, a three-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Year, an eight-time NCAA First Team All-American and a seven-time Big Ten champion, to name a few.

Loper is a two-time NCAA First Team All-American, a three-time NCAA Second Team All-American, a two-time NCAA Regional champion on vault and was a finalist for the AAI award in 2022.

Reflecting on Ramler and Loper’s time with the Gophers program in her office at Athletes Village, Hansen did not hold back on praising the duo for their contributions to her program.

When asked if Ramler is the program’s greatest gymnast of all time and whether Loper is the program’s best vaulter ever, Hansen, without hesitation, responded with “yes” to both questions.

“I can’t think of another athlete that has made more of an impact [than Ramler],” Hansen said. “We are dearly going to miss [Loper’s] vault … it was an event that we all got better on because we had Ona in that lineup.”

Ramler and Loper led the Gophers gymnastics team to back-to-back NCAA appearances in 2021 and 2022 for the first time in program history, alongside a Big Ten Championship title in 2021.

The Gophers finished their 2022 campaign by taking sixth at the NCAA Championships, the team’s highest placing ever in the National tournament. Minnesota also reached 198 points for the first time in program history against Iowa on Feb. 25.

The duo did not let off their gas pedals in their fifth year competing together.

Ramler averaged 39.634 in the all-around, recorded one perfect 10 on beam, and tallied a career-high on floor (9.975), while Loper averaged 39.492 in the all-around, scored a career-best (39.750) in the all-around and recorded two perfect 10s on vault.

1.838 points. That is how little the point totals separated Ramler and Loper in all-around competition this season.

Loper progressively got better and more consistent every year, but she flew under the radar because of her best friend, who she has roomed with for the past four years.

“Ona is someone who doesn’t mind being in the shadows. She doesn’t love the limelight, she’s uncomfortable with that. As we look back at it, I think it was a comfortable situation for her. She didn’t have to be the one in front leading,” Hansen said. “She got to do her thing, keep getting better, and got some attention along the way, but enjoying that piece where she and Lexy could do it together.”

The competitive but ever-friendly duo pushed each other as training partners, competing against each other in workouts and holding competitions often. The years of challenges helped Ramler and Loper to pursue greatness together.

“We want to see each other do so well,” Ramler said. “It’s been hard, but to have that person that knows exactly what you’re going through and is doing the same work and just going through everything the same, it just brings all that comfort.”

Before they became Gophers, Ramler and Loper never had training partners. The opportunity to have one was not there as other gymnasts in their clubs were years younger, and the two of them were the best gymnasts at their clubs, respectively.

Once they had the opportunity to train with another gymnast of their skill, Ramler and Loper did not step away from embracing a relationship that became one of the most special in college gymnastics.

“It’s been nice to have someone to always be able to go to with anything. College can be really hard, so having someone that can relate to all of your struggles is super nice,” Loper said. “She’s been there through everything, and she’s just really pushed me as a gymnast and made me be a better person overall.”

Ramler and Loper mentioned how fortunate they were to come into the program as freshmen and have great mentors in senior leaders, such as Rachel Rowland and Hannah Hitchcock, with whom they remain in contact.

The two positive-minded seniors helped guide the future program-changing duo through the culture and environment of college gymnastics while reminding them to have fun and not take themselves too seriously.

“They taught us how to have fun and enjoy every day,” Loper said. “Hannah would always just say, ‘It is just gymnastics. Put that in perspective. It’s not the end of the world if you mess up.’ I think that’s helped every single year reduce the pressure a little bit in competitions and just allowed me to have a lot more fun.”

Reflecting on some of their favorite moments of their gymnastics careers, Ramler and Loper turned to perfect 10s. The duo combined for 10 throughout their careers.

In her junior season (2020) against Illinois, Ramler recorded a perfect 10 for the second time in her career to put the roaring crowd on their feet and become the first Gophers gymnast to reach perfection at Maturi Pavilion.

Less than two months later, Loper tallied the first perfect 10 of her career on vault against North Carolina State shortly before COVID-19 caused the 2020 season to end abruptly.

Ramler and Loper will leave the program with everlasting memories and impacts on teammates, coaches, fans, and the rest of the gymnastics world, which has yet to sink in for the duo.

“I don’t even understand how much of an impact we have been able to make,” Ramler said. “I know that we’ve been a part of something really cool and really great, but I think it’s going to take a while to really understand the amount of impact that we’ve actually been able to make on this team and this program. But it’s been something that I think both of us are super grateful to be a part of and have enjoyed every single bit.”

Loper will graduate this month with a master’s in epidemiology, while Ramler will finish her master’s in human resources and industrial relations this fall.

Ramler hopes to stay involved in gymnastics through different outreaches, such as coaching or camps. Loper will not be involved quite as much but mentioned she would continue to be a supportive alum for her Gophers family.

INTRO MUSIC PLAYS 

MICHAEL LYNE: Hello, and welcome back to the weekly rundown from the Minnesota Daily. I’m your host Michael Lyne, one of our four sports reporters. Today, I am with two of the greatest gymnasts to ever go through the Gophers women’s gymnastics program. Together, the duo holds the top-14 best all-around scores in program history. The first gymnast here with me today has a long list of accolades and accomplishments during her five-year stint with the Gophers. 

She was the 2021 AAI award winner, a three-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Year, a three-year Honda Award finalist and the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2018. She is an eight-time NCAA First Team All-American and a four-time NCAA Second Team All-American. She has seven Big Ten Championships titles to her name, which ties for the most in program history. She holds the program record in all-around competition, and she has earned five career-perfect 10s, four on beam and one on vault. She even has a gymnastics skill named after her. I could continue on with the accolades but without further ado, Lexy Ramler is the first gymnast from the Gophers women’s gymnastics team to join me today. Hi, Lexy.

LEXY RAMLER: Hi, Michael. How are you? 

LYNE: Good. Thanks for being here. Should be a fun podcast.

RAMLER: Thank you for having me.

LYNE: The second gymnast, but certainly not the least here with me today, also has quite the gymnastics resume after her five collegiate years with the Gophers. She was a finalist for the AAI award in 2022 and is a two-time NCAA First Team All-American and a three-time NCAA Second Team All-American. She has five career perfect 10s on vault, the most in Gophers program history. She’s a Big Ten champion on floor, and the only gymnast to have a higher all-around score than her in program history is sitting directly to her left in Lexy Ramler. The second gymnast that is joining Lexy and I today is Ona Loper. Hi, Ona.

ONA LOPER: Hi, Michael. Thanks for having us.

LYNE: Of course. So just to get into it. To start, I’m just curious to learn about kind of how your guys’ relationship developed over the past five years. Do you guys remember the first time you guys met?

LOPER: Yeah, I think it was on our official visit in, I think, September 2016, I think, when we both came to Minnesota. Yeah, that was, that was so long ago. It’s crazy. 

RAMLER: That was a long time ago for sure. Yeah, I remember. Both of us were pretty quiet. And so we didn’t have that initial connection right away, I think. It was more so, you know, we were just nice to each other and whatnot. And I think our bond really started to grow the first summer that we were here in that aspect. So.

LYNE: What was kind of the first reactions that you had of each other?

LOPER: Personally, I was a little bit intimidated by Lexy. Obviously, she was an elite athlete. Just an incredible person all around. So just meeting her in person was kind of crazy. And I mean, yeah, I was, I was definitely intimidated. I didn’t really know how to approach her.

RAMLER: My first kind of like interaction with Ona, I really came to college, so I was really quiet in high school and so I wanted to come to college and kind of grow outside of my bubble a little bit. So she was a little quiet. So, I was like, okay, like she’s super nice. And then, but like I wasn’t like super super drawn to her I would say.

LOPER: It wasn’t love at first sight. 

RAMLER: It was not love at first sight. But then again, like during that summer when we were like actually together and like working out together and basically 24/7 together. That’s where our bond really grew.

LYNE: The relationship wasn’t big at that time. But as it progressed throughout the years, you guys have been roommates. Correct?

RAMLER: Yes.

LYNE: For how long?

LOPER: Since, well, freshman year we weren’t but after that, so the past four years.

LYNE: I was talking to Jenny this morning and she said that you guys are very close. You take studies very seriously and you spend a lot of time together. Just what has that meant to you guys to have developed such a close relationship? You know, whereas you came in freshman year you weren’t roommates, just how’s that been?

RAMLER: For me personally, it has meant so much. I think really kind of having that training buddy every single day, we work very similar together. We like our space, but we also really like each other at the same time. So there’s so many different aspects about how we just really like draw that connection with each other and it’s just so fun and so cool to experience all of these different opportunities with your favorite person.

LOPER: Yeah, I agree. It’s definitely been nice just to have someone to always be able to go to with anything. College, it can be really hard, and so having someone that can relate to all of your struggles is super nice. She’s been there through everything, and she’s just really pushed me as a gymnast and made me be a better person overall.

LYNE: I’ve had the pleasure of watching you guys, covering the team over the past two seasons. How much has just like friendly competition helped you guys in practice and meets? Obviously just watching you guys you guys seem to be even pretty competitive with each other.

RAMLER: I would say that really comes in like, like, working out. Like, for me personally, like conditioning like we have like this five back tuck routine. I’m like, “Hey, you want to race?” She’s like “Yeah.” I’m like, “Okay, let’s go.” And so like, that’s where I said like we really push ourselves like in the gym and just in that competitive aspect. But I think when it comes to competition, we’re still there for support. We want to see each other do so well. And ultimately that just, you know, brings up the team. And it’s, it’s been hard but to have that person that knows exactly what you’re going through and is doing the same work and just going through everything the same. It just brings all that comfort.

LYNE: For sure. And, when you guys are choosing a school 5, 6, 7 years ago, why Minnesota? What brought you guys to Minnesota? What interested you about Minnesota’s gymnastics program?

LOPER: I feel like this one might be easy for Lexy because she’s from Minnesota. But for me, I didn’t really know a lot about the University of Minnesota before I did my first visit. It wasn’t really something I was drawn to just because it was so far away from home. And then, the coaches contacted me and I kind of just like started talking to them a little bit and I really liked Jenny and just how her personality and just how she talked about the program. So I ended up coming to visit and then I just immediately fell in love with everything – the campus, the people. And just it was very different and that was kind of like an environment that I wanted to experience. So I was excited to kind of get outside of my comfort zone and experience something new.

RAMLER: So, I was pretty much more on the opposite. I wanted to stay close to home. I wanted to stay in Minnesota close to my family and everything. So that was ultimately my biggest decision there, but also like the academics here at the University of Minnesota are just world-class. And so that definitely is what drew me there and then just kind of how the coaches also interacted with the athletes and through kind of practices. And that’s definitely what drew me overall to this program.

LYNE: When I was talking to Jenny, Ona, she mentioned that the Minnesota gymnastics program was the first program to offer you. Is that true?

LOPER: Yes, and the only.

LYNE: Just, it was the only one? 

LOPER: Yeah.

LYNE: The only one that took a chance on you?

RAMLER: That’s nuts. 

LYNE: How does that make you feel sitting here 5, 6, 7 years later?

LOPER: I’m, I’m just really grateful for Minnesota for being the one to reach out to me. I wouldn’t have wanted to experience my college gymnastics career anywhere else. So honestly, that’s all I have to say about that.

LYNE: Moving on, do you guys have an all-time like favorite individual or team accomplishment? I’m sure your first perfect 10s are up there, the Big 10’s are up there, so maybe there’s not anything else out there, but I’m curious to know because you guys have definitely earned some like accomplishments outside of outside of the gym, such as like Big Ten honors, National honors. So I’m just curious if there’s anything there.

RAMLER: I would say for me. Like just being able to go back to Nationals again with this team. I think the coolest part about being a part of this program through all my years is just the growth that it has experienced. And it’s just been so cool to watch to just be a part of something that continues to grow is, it’s just a different connection, I would say to kind of the whole experience.

LOPER: Yeah, I agree, I think going to Nationals this year and last year. It made us feel like we’re just like an incredible program and something that it’s really special to be a part of and finishing in the top 6 this year is such a huge accomplishment for this program. So it’s really, it’s really cool that we have been able to experience that.

LYNE: Yeah, and for people that don’t know the Gophers making NCAA appearances, in the last two seasons and back to back is the first time in program history that that has happened. So that’s super exciting. I’m curious to know about your guys’ like focus and mental preparation that goes into meets like if there’s a meet at like 2 p.m., like, when do you wake up, and like what’s your routine like before you even get to the Pav let’s say?

LOPER: I can go. I feel like mine’s changed every single year because I’ve tried to like do different strategies and I think I think it’s helped, I don’t know though. But I think I’m a little bit opposite than Lexy on this, but I really just try not to think about anything about like focusing on school like right before is like ideal just because your head is totally not thinking about gym, and yeah, just really trying to stay distracted honestly. And then usually like the day before practices when I kind of have a little freakout and like kind of stress and everything so then like the day of the meet I’m like, “Alright, I’ll be fine like no worries.” And that definitely happened a lot this year, which I think stressed a lot of people out but it gave me more confidence so I was good with it.

RAMLER: Yes. So we are completely opposites in this aspect. Whenever she would like, like just like struggle like the day before like everybody would kind of freak out. I was like, “Ah, she’s fine guys. I’m not concerned whatsoever. Warm-ups, if she’s falling, like she’s fine. No, no big issue.” But I think that’s just been throughout watching your confidence grow as well as just you overall as an individual. For me personally. I also have a little freakout typically the night before, that’s just kind of how it goes. But it’s just like kind of at a point where I get so overwhelmed with everything and it’s not for every competition, but like the bigger ones. I just get so overwhelmed and then it’s just like okay, then I like calm down and settle down and really kind of like lock-in. I’m definitely very focused on gymnastics probably the night before, all the way up to the meet. I don’t do homework at those times. Very much into just visualizing and just, you know, looking at my affirmations and kind of all those different aspects.

LYNE: Do you guys have any like go-to meals the night before a meet or like the morning of a meet?

LOPER: I feel like usually Jenny kind of makes sure we do like pasta or something with like a lot of carbs before a meet so like for away meets that’s usually what we do. I feel like chicken parm is probably one of our go-to’s.

RAMLER: We always get like the exact same meals.

LOPER: We always get the exact same thing. But for home meets, not really, just kind of do what you do every other day. 

RAMLER: Yeah, I would say like right before I go out, I do have like half of a bagel with cream cheese. That is kind of like a thing that I’ve like had but that’s the only thing that’s really repeated.

LYNE: Would you say that’s like a superstition? You always have to eat your half-bagel with cheese?

RAMLER: Um, no. I wouldn’t say that. I do kind of like get upset if it’s not there. 

LOPER: It wasn’t there at Nationals, right?

RAMLER: It was not there at Nationals. 

LOPER: “Where’s my cream cheese and bagel?” She’s really flustered. 

RAMLER: Yeah, I was kind of flustered. But I was like, “Okay, it’s more of like, I know I need to eat something,” because like, I haven’t ate like that entire morning like I need to eat something and like, that’s just like the only thing I can really like put down like even though like I don’t really want it otherwise it’s just like an applesauce I guess, but.

LYNE: Do either of you have any superstitions with like warming up and getting ready for meets?

LOPER: I was really superstitious in high school. Like before I came to college. And I like once I came to college, I was like, “No, like some things you just can’t control just like don’t worry about it.” For a little bit, it was like the same earrings. I think, are you?

RAMLER: Yeah, I like I wear the same earrings but I don’t think like it would like change. Like I like know that it doesn’t affect my like performance and I think that’s like both of us kind of like realize is that with like kind of gymnastics or any sport, you, whatever is thrown at you you have to deal with and figure it out and kind of be adaptable in those different aspects. So I think that’s what we realized, but I do wear the exact same earrings for every single meet.

LOPER: There’s like little things where it’s like, oh, like maybe if I do this again it will be good because last meet it was good. But like, you know that that’s not true. So I think it’s like in the back of your head, but you know, you can still do well either way.

RAMLER: Yeah, like I did poor at one meet and I’ve never done that hairstyle again. So, it’s like stuff like that.

LYNE: What was the hairstyle?

RAMLER: It was just like a simple braid in the front. I was kind of upset because it was like it looked good. And then I was like, “Nope, can’t do it again.” So, then I like I have a hairstyle that I do for every single meet. So, that was the one time that I switched it up. And I was like, “Yep, see ya.” That’s what did it, but it’s not in reality, but you know.

LYNE: I’ve always been curious to ask athletes, especially at the college level how you guys deal with social media. Do you guys go on it a lot? Do you look at it a lot? Like how do you guys handle going about social media, especially for you two since you’re like really, really good gymnasts? How do you guys just deal with that?

LOPER: I can go. I actually deleted both my accounts this year just so that I could, you know, more just like enjoy it because like there are people that say things or like or you do kind of get caught up in like one thing someone says or like if you are doing good you want to see like if people are noticing, you know, like things like that. So it’s just easier just to like not look at it at all. So I found a lot more peace just like not looking at anything, so it was really nice.

RAMLER: Again, opposites here. I am definitely more into social media. I would say some of my like other teammates are even more into it. Like I don’t think I’m like that into it. But I appreciate kind of the different outreach that I, you know, impacts that I can make out you know, just reaching like younger athletes and just seeing like the cool stuff that they say. Ultimately, really focusing on the positive aspects, not focusing so much on the negative. Media can really kind of like drag you down in that way. But I think that’s, over time, is something that you learn. But yes, I’m definitely more into social media.

LYNE: I’m curious to just hear what’s next for you guys. Are you guys going to be involved in gymnastics in the future? Whether that be continuing on actually being a gymnast or coaching. Kind of just what’s next for you two?

RAMLER: Um, for me so I will still have one more semester of my master program. So, this summer I will be interning with Polaris, which I’m super excited about and then going to be finishing my master’s early. And but then like, gymnastics is such a big part of my life. For me, like personally, like I just love it so much. And being able to kind of coach young athletes is definitely something that I enjoy. So I’m going to find a way to stay in gymnastics somehow just through camps or doing floor routines and just different outreaches in that way. 

LOPER: So I will be graduating with my master’s in epidemiology in the next week or so.

LYNE: Congrats.

LOPER: So my plans are kind of just to pursue my epidemiology career. I’m still not quite sure where it will lead me yet, but I wouldn’t mind staying in gymnastics. Not quite to the extent that I think Lexy wants to, but I’ll still come back and watch meets and cheer on the Gophers. They’ll always be a family to me now, so I’ll always want to check in to make sure they’re doing well and if they need anything and just being supportive alumni now, so I’m excited for that.

LYNE: Do you have any messages for Gophers fans out there? 

RAMLER: Thank you.

LOPER: Yes. Thank you so much for everything.

RAMLER: Yes, thank you so much for the support in the Pav, outside of the Pav, from a distance over social media, everything. I think our entire team has really felt it and it’s, it’s just meant so much to us.

LOPER: We truly have the best fans.

LYNE: Again, I want to thank Ona Loper and Lexy Ramler for sitting down with me and talking all things Gophers gymnastics. Be sure to check out our website mndaily.com for more coverage, and tune in again at a later date to get the Weekly Rundown on all things Gopher sports. Thank you, Lexy. Thank you, Ona. I appreciate it. This was fun. 

RAMLER: Thank you so much. 

LOPER: Thank you.

INTRO MUSIC 

ANNA LANDIS: Hello, and welcome back to the Weekly Rundown from the Minnesota Daily, I am your host Anna Landis our Sports Editor with episode 41. Today, I am here with Michael Lyne, our men’s hockey reporter, to discuss the end of the men’s hockey season at the Frozen Four last weekend  in Boston, Massachusetts, which Michael was able to travel to and report from live. Hi, Michael.

MICHAEL LYNE: Hi, Anna. Thanks for having me. It was a fun week in Boston, also a long one. 

LANDIS: Right, um, to recap, the men’s hockey team went on a deep postseason run making it to the final weekend of competition at the Frozen Four. How did they do in the regular season leading up to that point?

LYNE: Yeah, the regular season for the Gophers this year was quite the roller coaster. They started in the first half with the record of 10 and eight at the halfway mark at winter break, and when they came back from winter break to finish out the season in the second half, they had a 13 and three record in the second half to finish 23 and 11 on the season before playoffs, including an eight and oh run in February. So February was really nice to them. Overall, the season was just a roller coaster because Jack LaFontaine, their starting goaltender left midseason January, Justen Close had to come in. Never had any experience. He played minimally in games, but he never had started the game in his first three years here up until that point, he’s great for them. And then also the Olympians leave, Matthew Knies, Ben Meyers, Brock Faber. They all left for a little bit there in the second half. And just weren’t really any bad COVID issues this year, which was nice for them. But they did have to deal with injuries, as well.

LANDIS: Right and then kind of the end of the regular season then they fell to Michigan in the Big 10 Championship at home. But after that they were selected in the selection show to continue playing in the postseason in the Worcester Regional. Which opponents did they face there and sort of how did those games play out?

LYNE: So in the Worcester regional, they played Massachusetts first. So the Gophers were the number two seed in the regional in Massachusetts was number three in that first game. They had a comeback win, scoring three unanswered goals to win 4-3 in overtime. So they won that game, and they moved on to play Western Michigan, Worcester Regional Final, and then they also won that game three zero so two great games for them in the Worcester Regional to move on to the Frozen Four, which was their first appearance since 2014.

LANDIS: With their appearance in the Worcester Regional by making it to that point, they did reach a historic milestone. They became the first team in college hockey history to play in 39 NCAA Tournaments following their selection to that point, but once they arrived in Boston, unfortunately, they only played one game that weekend, before being eliminated from the hunt. So how did that game sort of play out? They were facing Minnesota State Mankato, which is a very strong in-state team. And the Gophers actually scored first which may have been surprising for people not what they may have expected against the Mavericks, but how did that game play out?  

LYNE:  Minnesota State started off real quick. They’re actually a quicker team than I thought they were. I knew they were going to be aggressive but they were really coming at the Gophers, making it really hard for them even to get pucks in the offensive zone. The Gophers spent a lot of time in their defensive zone in that first period. But then there was just a mistake near the midway point of that first period. Andy Carroll and Benton Maass had a little miscommunication somewhere along the lines near their own blue line, and junior Bryce Brodzinski picked up the puck to create a two on oh on Dryden McKay. Brodzinski gave it to Knies, Knies gave it back to Brodzinski and Brodzinski gave it back to Knies and he buried it on the open net. 

LANDIS: Yeah. Beautiful goal. 

LYNE: Beautiful goal. McKay didn’t really have any chance at it. I mean, when it’s a two on oh like that, goalie’s left out to dry.

LANDIS: Yeah, not a lot you can do.

LYNE: Hard to save. So, the Gophers took a one zero lead in that first period despite being outshot 11 to four.

LANDIS: Yeah. 

LYNE: And then from there it was downhill.

LANDIS: It sort of was downhill. So in addition to being very aggressive toward the Gophers in terms of maybe defensive wise, Minnesota State was very strong offensively. They forced a lead change in the second two-one game. So what sort of happened in that six minute span in the second where that all kind of broke down?

LYNE: Minnesota State just kept coming, kept coming and then those goals just finally came for them and they were interesting goals. They were two wraparound goals. You don’t see those happen too often – especially alone in games like these.

LANDIS: In one game.

LYNE: So they scored two wraparound goals in the second period, and that really shifted the game in their hands just because Minnesota State was out-playing the Gophers up until that point. They just couldn’t get anything past Close. And Close being a little bit of a smaller goaltender having him to move side to side. That’s how you’re going to beat him. And that’s how they did it with those two wraparound goals.

LANDIS: Right, so then after Close has already sort of taken these two wraparound goals which are really, you know, like you said not really par for the course in one game. Then there were three more unanswered goals in the third. So what happened there?

LYNE: So collectively it was, it was five unanswered goals. 

LANDIS: Yeah.

LYNE: It’s very unfortunate. Third one was bad. Basically, in my mind, I was thinking the Gophers have to score the next goal to be in this game. Otherwise it’s going to get out of hand. And they didn’t get that third goal. Or, they didn’t get the second goal to tie it up.

LANDIS:  Right. They didn’t respond. 

LYNE: They didn’t respond and Minnesota state made it three-one. And that third goal Minnesota State scored was really early on in the third period. Yeah, it was maybe not even two minutes into the third period and it was a deflected goal from the point from the blue line. That’s hard to save as a goalie so Close really didn’t have much of a chance there as well. And then the fourth one was another just unbelievable goal. It was in the slot and David Silye just ripped it past Close into the upper left corner of the net. There’s not much you can do when no one’s going to get in front of that shot. And it’s just clean look from point blank almost.

LANDIS: Yeah. And then they did have at the end of that they had an empty-net goal.

LYNE: Yeah. Just to really cement that 5-1 win. So.

LANDIS: Right. So Minnesota just, you know, looking at the score of five one they were really not active at all offensively like what exactly contributed to that like, was it just purely goaltending from Dryden McKay or what all sort of factored into that?

LYNE: It was a mix, I’d say, of their defense and just offense like the Gophers just were trapped a lot of the tasks they would barely get it out of their own zone and then they would have it in the neutral zone and sometimes they would get it deep but it would come right back out.

LANDIS: Yeah,.

LYNE: Minnesota State would be counting against them right back and it just made it really hard because Minnesota State played so well and the Gophers just couldn’t get any sort of good amounts of zone time. Yeah, just seemed like it was always in the neutral zone or on the Gophers end the ice for a good amount of the game. 

LANDIS: Yeah. And, you know, this now marks the second year in a row that we’ve had our season end at the hands of Minnesota State so it does sort of seem that that is sort of the litmus test for sort of where they have to be and like, what they have to improve to, to be able to compete at that Frozen Four level. Now that the season is over, there has been a lot of movement with some players entering the transfer portal, some players signing contracts and there are still some players who we don’t know if they are moving but they may go to a different school or the NHL. So what is that looking like? 

LYNE: Yeah, transfer portal right now: senior Matt Denman, juniors Jonny Sorenson and Jack Perbix are on the transfer portal, seniors Ben Brinkman and Grant Cruikshank had both entered the transfer portal but they’ve already transferred schools. So Brinkman is going to Notre Dame he’s going to be playing there next fall. And then for Cruikshank, he’s going to St. Cloud State University for his fifth year. And in terms of NHL contracts, senior Blake McLaughlin signed his entry level contract with the Anaheim Ducks. And then junior co-Captain Ben Meyers, an unrestricted free agent is headed to the Colorado Avalanche that was announced Wednesday and he’s joining the best team in the NHL. So good for him that’s a really exciting position to be. He’s actually set to make his debut tonight, which is Saturday, April 16. For the Avalanche. So that’s just, what an exciting year for Ben Meyers.

LANDIS: Yeah. And he’ll be joining former teammate Sampo Ranta, which is pretty exciting, as well as Erik Johnson who played on the Gophers.

LYNE: And then in terms of Gophers players announcing that they’re staying: there are three players that have announced that they are staying for another season with the Gophers and those three players are junior Jackson LaCombe. He’s an All American defenseman. So that’s just a big component for the Gophers to have on the team-

LANDIS: Yeah.

LYNE: Next season. sophomore Brock Faber is also coming back, he’s an Olympian, Defensive Player of the Year; those two defensemen are going to play significant roles for them next year if they want to make a run. And then the last certainly, but not least, is freshman Matthew Knies, who also happens to be an Olympian. So that’s just another huge get for the Gophers, he’s a forward and he’s going to provide a lot of goal-scoring for them. 

LANDIS: And then there are still some players who are undecided as of right now, now that the season’s ended. We still don’t know exactly where they’ll end up, whether they will stay with Minnesota or not. So which players are sort of in that position right now?

LYNE: There are two players, I believe, that are in that position right now. The first one is senior co-captain Sammy Walker. He technically has a COVID year to take so he can stay with the Gophers next year. Don’t know if that’s going to happen because he’s also been drafted to the NHL. Right so he has the opportunity to move on to the next level but he also has opportunity, to stay here another year if he’d like. I don’t know if that’s totally up to him or coach Bob Motzko. I’m sure there’s going to be a conversation there with Sammy, but that’s one that hasn’t really had an announcement yet. I guess and then the second one is junior Ryan Johnson, defenseman for the Gophers. He was also drafted. Just really talented on the back end for the Gophers. And who knows, he could go pro if he wants. But again, haven’t heard any news on his decision yet. 

LANDIS: Yeah. 

LYNE: So it’s kind of a waiting game with them.

LANDIS: Walker, uh, was drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning, but who drafted Ryan Johnson?

LYNE: The Buffalo Sabres.  

LANDIS: Okay. So if he was signed he would be able to play in the last few weeks of the regular season, but would be to play in the playoffs because he [would have] signed after the NHL’s Trade Deadline and that is the case, um, for anyone on the Gophers who would be signing now, and that also applies to Ben Meyers. And in addition to covering men’s hockey this winter, you also covered women’s gymnastics for us at the Daily so what was their season like? They had a pretty eventful weekend, this weekend and through the last couple of weeks of their competition as well.

LYNE: Yeah. Overall, I’d say the Gophers gymnastics team had a really, really successful season. There’s a couple up and down moments throughout the year. Obviously there was a couple of meets that they could have won but they didn’t. But overall I’d say it was very successful. They made it all the way to the NCAA championships semifinals, marking the first time that’s ever happened in program history and back to back seasons. And in that semifinal, so there’s two semifinals, session one and session two, the Gophers gymnastics team was in session one, and out of each session the top two teams advance. Unfortunately for the Gophers, they placed third in their semifinals session one. But overall, they placed sixth overall of the eight teams left in the NCAA championships, and that was their highest placing ever in program history. So the Gophers women’s gymnastics team has lots to be proud of this year. Sixth place is still really good. It’s so hard in gymnastics to even make the NCAA tournament. 

LANDIS: Yeah. 

LYNE: So I mean with the highest place in program history. They gotta be pretty proud of that.

LANDIS: Yeah, and you’re right about, like, how close everything is in gymnastics. Like whenever I’ve looked at your stories throughout the season, it’s like by decimal points, of winning and losing. 

LYNE: Yeah, and the NCAA championships took place today, Saturday, April 16, Oklahoma won  the 2022 NCAA Championship after totaling 198.2 points. It’s their fifth national championship in eight years.

LANDIS: Wow. So who did Minnesota face on Thursday? 

LYNE: It was number one, Oklahoma, number four, Utah, number five, Alabama, and we were number eight. 

LANDIS: Okay. 

LYNE: The Gophers gymnastics team was eight. So yeah, just a lot of good competition there and it’s hard to beat top five teams.

LANDIS:  Yeah. 

LYNE: So they competed. They were very close, but obviously fell a little short.

LANDIS:  Yeah. And who stood out in competing on that day? 

LYNE:  Yeah, they had four gymnasts, um, collect All American honors. The first gymnast is fifth year Hannah Willmarth she earned NCAA championships second team All American honors on bars. She had a great bar routine at the semifinals, she scored 9.9 which tied her season high on the year, so for a fifth year to do that in her last meet is pretty special. So that was awesome for Hannah.

LYNE: Moving on is sophomore Mya Hooten, she’s just incredibly talented. 

LANDIS: Yeah. 

LYNE: For the Gophers gymnastics team, they’re lucky that she’s only a sophomore right now,  because she will be fun and very successful moving forward for the gymnastics team. But she earned NCAA championships second team All American honors on vault. She scored a team high 9.9 on vault. And she earned first team All American honors on floor where she scored a team high 9.95.

LANDIS: Her floor routine is, 

LYNE: One of the best in the nation.

LANDIS: Yeah.

LYNE: No doubt about that. So she was just great for them as well. Moving on, another successful day was for fifth-year Ona Loper at the semifinals she earned NCAA championships Second Team honors in the all around after she collected 39.35 points. And then she also got second team All American honors on bars. She scored 9.9 on her bar routine. So for her to go out again, just collect those honors is really special. And then last but certainly not least, is one of the greatest gymnasts to ever come through the University of Minnesota and that’s fifth-year Lexy Ramler. She earned NCAA championships All American First Team honors on the all around and on bars and beam. In the semifinals her all around score was 39.6125, her bar score was a team high at 9.95. And then her beam score was 9.9375. So she had another just, 

LANDIS: Yeah. 

LYNE: I mean Lexy’s Lexy, she’s put up those numbers all year long for them and just always provides really good scores for the Gophers gymnastics team. And she went out on a really special way too. The Gophers in the semifinal close out bars and she anchors the bars team,  which means she goes last of the six.

LANDIS:  Yeah.

LYNE: On the bars team. And she scored that 9.95 last. And at that time before she went they were in last place so they were fourth in session one. That 9.95 brought the Gophers up a spot ahead of Alabama. So they ended up finishing in third, and that helped them get their highest placing in program history. So for one of the greatest gymnasts to ever go through the program and to help them reach that goal or reach that placing is really, really special.

LANDIS: Yeah. And her being a fifth year, her and Ona Loper, they are both,  this is their last year they won’t be returning is that right? 

LYNE:  Yup. This year was both of their COVID years. 

LANDIS: Okay. 

LYNE: Ona was injured her freshman year, but I don’t know if she would be able to get, like, a medical year for that. 

LANDIS: Yeah.

LYNE: I don’t know what their requirements are, if she competed in too many meets before she got injured, but, 

LANDIS: Yeah. 

LYNE: But she was injured at some point her freshman year. 

LANDIS:  Yeah. Or if she, yeah, like a medical redshirt. 

LYNE: Correct. Yeah. 

LANDIS: Okay.

LYNE: So there’s potential there. I doubt it. But yeah. The Gophers are gonna certainly miss them next season. 

LANDIS: And that’s got to be a good meet for them to end on, personally. With those results.

LYNE:  Oh, for sure, just the highest placing in program history. They both certainly played a big role in getting the Gophers that far for sure.

LANDIS: Now that men’s hockey and women’s gymnastics are finished for the year, in our time left in the semester for publishing at the Daily, you will be covering softball for us. Along with Matthew Kennedy our other softball reporter. For people wanting to keep up with your coverage, what’s your Twitter handle? Cause I would say that’s the best place to keep up with reporters at the Daily. We publish a lot of live tweeting and that’s where we link all of our stories. So what is your Twitter handle Michael?

LYNE: My Twitter handle is going to be @mikeylyne5. So yeah, I’m joining Matt for the softball beat now, I’ve been keeping tabs on the softball team and it should be fun.

LANDIS: Alright. Well, Michael, thank you for being here. And look forward to seeing the rest of your coverage this year.

LYNE: Thank you, Anna. Appreciate it. Thanks for having me.

LANDIS: All right. And that has been episode 41 of the Weekly Rundown from the Minnesota Daily with men’s hockey reporter Michael Lyne. I’m your host Anna Landis. Thank you for listening and stay tuned for our next episode.

After Minnesota’s comeback fell short against Michigan in the Big Ten Championship, head coach Bob Motzko said, “I sure hope so,” when asked whether or not the loss was the resetting type for his team.

With the loss in the conference title match, the Gophers dropped from No. 2/3 in the two college hockey polls to No. 5/6, a significant drop considering the loss was their first since Jan. 29.

However, Minnesota (24-12) is now focusing on the task ahead: their trek to a national title begins with the reigning national champions No. 10/9 Massachusetts (22-12-2) on Friday, March 25, at 5 p.m., in the NCAA Worcester Regional.

“[Massachusetts is] a good system team with a lot of skilled players,” senior Ben Brinkman said. “They are going to be a hard team to play against, so we got to get ready for them.”

Bobby Trivigno leads the Minutemen’s attack. The senior forward has 48 points (20 goals, 28 assists) in 36 games this season. Those 48 points put him at No. 4 in the nation.

The Gophers hold a strong record on the road this season at 11-5. Another key for Minnesota is scoring the game’s first goal as they have a 16-5 record when scoring first.

“It never gets old – this is a great time of year. They call it ‘March Madness’ for a reason,” Motzko said. “We’re a good road team, and we need to get on the road right now. We’ve been at home for too long. We’re going to be a fired-up group to get out of here.”

Minnesota and Massachusetts have never faced off against each other in the NCAA tournament action. However, the Gophers are 4-0-0 all-time against the Minutemen.

When the puck drops Friday evening, Minnesota will be the first team in college hockey to play in 39 NCAA tournaments.

The winner between the Gophers and Massachusetts will face off against the winner between Western Michigan and Northeastern on Sunday, March 27, at 3:00 p.m. or 5:00 p.m., competing for a trip to the Frozen Four.

“We’re just excited to get it going,” senior co-captain Sammy Walker said. “They are a great team, and one of my very good buddies [Garrett Wait] is on the team.”

Coming into the 2021-2022 season, Minnesota sat at No. 4 in the nation in the rankings. The Big Ten preseason coaches poll also tabbed them as the favorites to win the conference.

The Gophers (21-11) have been getting on a roll in the second half of the season. Minnesota has swept three-straight series to stay undefeated throughout February, defeating Michigan State, Ohio State and Penn State, with the last two series on the road.

Minnesota has put itself in a position to have a chance at winning the Big Ten regular-season title and now sit back at No. 4 in the nation for the first time since the week of Oct. 18. The ranking ties their highest this season.

Trailing Michigan by two points in the Big Ten standings, Minnesota can pull ahead to win the Big Ten if they sweep their final series this season against Wisconsin this weekend and/or get help from Notre Dame, who plays the Wolverines. However, the Gophers will remain in second place in the standings regardless of whatever happens, as Ohio State can’t pass them.

“We got to win Friday night. Whatever scenario happens,” Gophers head coach Bob Motzko said. “We’re going to have to scoreboard watch with Michigan at Notre Dame, but there’s no sense in doing it if we don’t take care of Friday … we got to take care of what we can take care of.”

As the Gophers prepare for Wisconsin, their Olympians have returned from Beijing as they arrived in time for game two of their series against Penn State this past weekend.

While freshman Matthew Knies did not return to the lineup after being banged up in Team USA’s Olympic finale, junior co-captain Ben Meyers and sophomore Brock Faber decided to skate in Minnesota’s 6-4 comeback win over Penn State Saturday.

Meyers helped fuel the Gophers to victory after recording three assists in his first game with the team since Jan. 29 en route to the conference naming him the Big Ten Third Star of the Week. He co-leads the team in points with senior Blake McLaughlin at 29 (11 goals, 18 assists) this season.

“It took me a little bit to get into the game. I think Brock said the same thing,” Meyers said. “We [were] just tired with the lack of sleep and the jetlag, but once we got halfway through the game, we settled in.”
As of Tuesday, Motzko said he thinks Knies and junior Jaxon Nelson, who has missed 13 games due to a leg injury, will return to Minnesota’s lineup against Wisconsin. At the same time, he mentioned freshman Chaz Lucius is about 50/50 to make his return from injury.

The Gophers have been battling injuries throughout the season, so everyone has contributed at various points. However, if Knies, Nelson and Lucius can all return this weekend, Motzko will have tough lineup choices to make given how the team’s depth pieces have performed recently, both on offense and defense.
“I’d like to get our full lineup back. We had our full lineup at Michigan State. That was our first [real] game after Christmas. [Since], we have not had our full lineup,” Motzko said. “I’d like to get healthy and stay healthy.”

When the Badgers (9-20-3) come into Dinkytown this week, the Gophers will search to finish their season by continuing to build on their six-game winning streak.

In their first meeting against Wisconsin earlier this season, Minnesota split the series against the Badgers in Madison.

“We got the border battle this weekend,” Faber said. “That’s one you always have circled on your calendar, so it’s going to be special. We’re looking forward to it.”

As Minnesota takes on the Badgers this weekend on Friday, Feb. 25, at 8 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m., the team will honor its senior class following the regular-season finale. Since the 2007-2008 season, the Gophers are 10-1-2 in regular-season home finales.

“We’re anticipating a pretty good crowd,” Motzko said. “There’s going to be excitement in the building this week. This is a big series and it’s Wisconsin. That’s exciting.”

Growing up playing hockey in Minnesota, Gophers junior Colin Schmidt always dreamed of playing collegiate hockey for the University of Minnesota as a kid. However, his path to the team was atypical.

Schmidt grew up in Wayzata, Minn., a western suburb of Minneapolis just over 15 miles from the University, attending Gophers games throughout his childhood.

In his high school career with the Wayzata Trojans, Schmidt helped the team win the 2016 MSHSL Class AA State Championship after burying an empty-net goal in a 5-3 victory over Eden Prairie.

After the Trojans’ 2016 state-winning season, Schmidt verbally committed to playing college hockey at the University of Minnesota.

But when Don Lucia, the Gophers head coach during that time, resigned two years later in 2018 after 19 years of coaching at Minnesota, things didn’t go as planned when current head coach Bob Motzko took over the program. Schmidt said the transition period didn’t work out for him. So, he reopened his recruitment.

After graduating from Wayzata High School in 2018, Schmidt joined the Jamestown Rebels in the North American Hockey League for the 2018-2019 season. He played in 41 regular-season games, recording 27 points and five playoff games, where he tallied two goals and one assist.

Union College, a small private school across the state, recruited Schmidt during his time with Jamestown. Then he joined the Dutchmen for his freshman season in 2019.

Schmidt skated in 32 games as a freshman, accumulating one goal and four assists. He was named an ACHA All-American Scholar and earned ECAC Hockey All-Academic honors.

Following the 2019-20 season, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Schmidt then decided to unenroll from Union, step away from collegiate hockey and move back home to be closer to his family.

“I was in a place where I felt I was ready to step away from the game, partially because Union wasn’t the right fit for me. I was comfortable pursuing the next phase of my life,” Schmidt said. “It was a super difficult decision, one that I thought a long time about. I had been playing hockey my whole life. It becomes a part of your identity. It was something where my dreams changed.”

Before his sophomore year of college, Schmidt enrolled at the University’s Carlson School of Management to pursue an undergraduate degree in finance.

With his enrollment at Minnesota, the Gophers’ athletic compliance office approached Motzko in the summer of 2020, thinking the team brought Schmidt back for the 2020-2021 season because his name popped back into their recruiting portal and tracking list.

Motzko, confused, quickly responded with, “we didn’t,” and that’s when he found out Schmidt was attending the University. Then he called Rick Bennett, Union’s head coach at the time, to learn more about why Schmidt returned home.

During Minnesota’s 2020-2021 campaign, with only 13 healthy forwards on the roster and COVID-19 in mind, Motzko wanted to add another forward to his roster. So, he gave Schmidt a call around Christmas break to see if he would be interested in making a return to collegiate hockey and joining the Gophers for the remainder of the 2020-21 season.

“When I had the opportunity to join the team, I certainly had to think about it — if I would really enjoy it. [However], it wasn’t too tough of a decision after talking to my family,” said Schmidt, who decided to join the Gophers. “It was only a commitment for the rest of the season. There wasn’t much to lose. Then it ended up going really well.”

Although Schmidt didn’t see any game action last season, he was a part of the Minnesota team that finished with a 24-7 record en route to winning the 2021 Big Ten Championship.

There was no guarantee Schmidt would be back on the roster moving forward. He knew that before he joined the team. However, Motzko brought him back for the 2021-22 season.

After watching countless games at 3M Arena at Mariucci as a child growing up, Schmidt’s childhood dream came true. He hit the ice for his first collegiate game for the Gophers on Nov. 12 against Ohio State. The game marked the first time he had played in a college hockey game since March 2020.

Already this season, the 6-foot-4-inch, 230 pound right-wing has skated in 11 games as the team has battled injuries, COVID-19 and the absences of junior co-captain Ben Meyers, sophomore Brock Faber and freshman Matthew Knies due to the Olympics throughout the season.

Although it doesn’t officially count, Schmidt even scored a goal for the Gophers in a 5-3 victory against St. Thomas in an exhibition game on Jan. 2.

“It was quite the turn of events. Even after coming back this fall to the team, I was just appreciative that I had a spot on the team. I was never promised any playing time whatsoever. Truly, that was never really a goal of mine,” Schmidt said. “Nevertheless, it’s been really fun.”

Schmidt has skated in every game of Minnesota’s most recent six-game win-streak, helping them sweep three-consecutive series for the first time this season.

The winger is not only playing in these games, but he’s truly making an impact. Schmidt recorded his first point for the Gophers after setting up junior Jack Perbix’s game-winning goal in a 3-1 victory over Penn State Friday.

“What an unbelievable young man, my goodness. He is so well-respected and liked on our team. I’m so happy he’s getting the chance to play and play for the Gophers. He’s been terrific for us. We’re so happy for him,” Motzko said. “He’s just a first-class human being. To have him come into our locker room, the guys just embrace him like part of the family. He’s a glue guy.”

Minnesota has six players who have eclipsed 20 points and 15 players with at least double-digits in that same category this season.

The Gophers are playing some of their best hockey down the stretch. Minnesota holds an 11-3 record in the second half of the season while outscoring their opponents 50-28 in that span.

With one series remaining against Wisconsin, the Gophers are in second place in the Big Ten standings with 49 points, trailing Michigan by two points in the table. The Wolverines also have one series left this season against Notre Dame.

“From a team perspective, I think the sky’s the limit. We’ve been really turning the corner in the second half. We have a scary lineup right now,” Schmidt said. “I think there’s no one in the country we can’t beat, so we have a really good chance this year to win the Big Ten regular season, the Big Ten tournament, and win the National Championship. Those are the things we talk about in our locker room every day. It’s going to be a fun couple of months here.”

For the first time this season, the Gophers men’s hockey team swept back-to-back series en route to four consecutive wins, their longest win streak, and have now put themselves in a better position to win the Big Ten regular season title.

Minnesota sits in second place in the conference table with 43 points, trailing Michigan — the No. 2 team in the nation — by two points as each team has four games remaining. They have surpassed the Buckeyes, who have two games left, both against the Wolverines, by one point in the Big Ten standings.

The Gophers, at the very least, will have home-ice advantage in the first round of the Big Ten tournament. However, if they surpass Michigan and finish in first place in the conference, they will earn a first-round bye.

After the back-to-back sweeps, Minnesota ranks at No. 5/6 in the two national college hockey polls, their highest ranking since Nov. 1.

“Our guys are just playing good hockey. People are picking up the slack. Our freshmen are scoring. Our defense is jumping into the offense. We’re getting goaltending,” Gophers head coach Bob Motzko said. “It’s been a two-week snapshot that’s been very good.”

The last two series of the Gophers’ 2021-2022 campaign will come against two of the conference’s lower-end teams in Penn State (14-15-1) and Wisconsin (9-20-3).

Minnesota’s entire lineup has been rolling, remaining undefeated without three of their top players in junior co-captain Ben Meyers, sophomore Brock Faber and freshman Matthew Knies. The trio will most likely not be back from the Olympics in time for this weekend’s series.

“I love the demeanor of our group. We just go to the next. It’s been that way all year with this group,” Motzko said. “There’s a lot of people doing good things.”

With Meyers and Knies overseas, freshman Chaz Lucius needed to find a new pair of linemates to mesh with. So, Motzko paired him with his freshmen counterparts in Aaron Huglen and Rhett Pitlick.

Ever since the line came to fruition in the Michigan State series, they have had immediate and important success together for the Gophers down the stretch.

The freshmen trio has accounted for six of Minnesota’s 15 goals over the past four games while also combining for a total of nine assists.

The Big Ten announced Tuesday that Pitlick was the conference’s Second Star of the Week after recording two goals and two assists in the Ohio State series. Half of his 14 collegiate points have come in his past four games.

“I would say my linemates are my key. I think all of us have great chemistry and have been able to show that,” said Pitlick, who recorded his first career multi-goal game Saturday. “I’ve really enjoyed playing with them.”

Sophomore Carl Fish continues to make the most of more ice time as he makes up one-half of the newly defensive duo between him and junior Jackson LaCombe, who has kicked his game back into All-American form from last season.

Fish and LaCombe first paired together six games ago in the Notre Dame series. Since then, they have combined for 12 assists.

“He is getting more comfortable. He was in and out of the lineup because of the depth back there,” Motzko said. “[Now] he’s putting heat on some other guys for playing time if we stay healthy back there. We’re very happy with him.”

Fish and the rest of the defensemen for the Gophers in Friday night’s lineup against Penn State will see plenty of ice time with Faber and senior Ben Brinkman out of the lineup.

On Monday, Brinkman received a one-game suspension from the Big Ten conference for slew-footing Ohio State’s Travis Treloar with under a minute left in Saturday night’s 5-1 victory.

On the other hand, there’s a possibility junior Jaxon Nelson might return to Minnesota’s forward group this weekend after he has missed the last 11 games due to a leg injury.

This weekend’s series against Penn State marks the Gophers’ last before Faber, Knies and Meyers return to the lineup.

“They’re unbelievable players. I think [their absences] provided an opportunity for guys to step up into bigger roles. It’s forcing guys to work really hard,” junior Bryce Brodzinski said. “It’s been paying off for our team. We’ve added a lot of grit to our lineup.”

After last weekend’s series sweep of Michigan State, Minnesota’s depth proved they could compete and put together a string of wins as they were without four of their lineup regulars.

The sweep marked the first time the Gophers (17-11) had swept an opponent since Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021, and their collective fourth this season.

But the No. 7/8 Gophers men’s hockey team will be battle-tested again this weekend when they travel to Columbus, Ohio, to take on Big Ten standings leaders in No. 8/7 Ohio State in what could be their season-defining series.

Minnesota sits at third place in the Big Ten standings with 37 points, trailing Michigan (39) and an Ohio State team at the top of the table with 42 points.

If they can sweep another series this weekend, the Gophers will make the race for the Big Ten regular-season title very tight, depending on how the No. 4 Wolverines perform in their series against Michigan State.

“Everybody has got to pull their share of the weight for this thing to keep moving forward,” Gophers head coach Bob Motzko said. “It’s fun for them to get added responsibility in games, whether it’s penalty kill or power play or even in the lineup. We got enough good players here to keep winning.”

One player that has taken advantage of more playing time is sophomore Carl Fish.

Fish only played in nine of Minnesota’s first 20 games this season. Since then, he has skated in each of their last eight games, seeing a significant increase in playing time in 2022.

Originally from St. Paul, Fish has recorded five assists over the past six games for the Gophers, three of them coming against Michigan State this past weekend to earn him Big Ten Third Star of the Week honors.

“Everyone that I grew up with playing on the east side, they text me, they call me,” Fish said. “It means the world to me to know that they’re all still keeping in touch and keeping up to date with me. Everything that I do, it’s for them, and I wouldn’t want to jeopardize that for anyone.”
Fish’s defensive partner, junior Jackson LaCombe, has also started to kick things into gear in the second half of the Big Ten season for Minnesota.

The 2020-21 First Team All-Big Ten defenseman has one goal and seven assists in his last eight contests, accounting for almost half of his 17 points this season.

Outside of Matthew Knies, who is overseas in Beijing, Minnesota’s freshmen — Chaz Lucius, Aaron Huglen, Tristan Broz and Rhett Pitlick have really started to come along for the Gophers at a much needed time.

All of them have greatly contributed to Minnesota’s depth lately, alongside junior goaltender Justen Close, who arguably had his best weekend in a Gophers’ uniform.

Close earned two wins in the sweep against Michigan after saving a collective 46 shots on 49 shots faced. He now holds a 2.01 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage through eight starts.

When the Gophers hit the ice at the Schottenstein Center starting Friday at 5:30 p.m., their depth will need to come up large for the second-consecutive weekend.

Ohio State currently holds an undefeated record over their past seven games as they have won six and tied one.

“Ohio State, they’re the kind of team that plays hard, they play fast. They really stepped it up this year. They’re a tough team to beat and it’s shown in the past couple of weekends,” Fish said. “It’s gonna be a tough weekend.”

Gophers gymnastics’ sophomore Mya Hooten quickly took the collegiate scene by storm last season with her breathtaking floor routine, but it is anything but just that this year.

Hooten, originally from Woodbury, Minn., ranked tied for No. 4 in the nation last season on floor after averaging a score of 9.898, highlighted by a perfect 10 against Nebraska to become the first Minnesota gymnast in the program’s history to achieve this feat.

After Hooten’s freshman season, Gophers head coach Jenny Hansen allowed the program’s rising superstar to create and perform a new floor routine for her sophomore campaign.

Then came Gophers assistant coach Geralen Stack-Eaton to assist Hooten in the process, the mastermind behind creating her new floor routine over the summer of 2021.

In her eighth season with the Gophers, Stack-Eaton always wanted to choreograph a routine with a Beyoncé song. This time around, Hansen granted her wish as Hooten needed a new floor routine.

“I really liked how Mya’s floor routine last year got a lot of attention,” Stack-Eaton said. “I was like, ‘We got to make it so much better this year, so it can even go more viral.’”

As the creative process got underway for Stack-Eaton and Hooten, they wanted to make the floor routine meaningful.

Brainstorming various ideas, Stack-Eaton quickly thought of different social issues in the Twin Cities.

Over recent years, Minnesota has been at the forefront of many of these issues — the murder of George Floyd (2020) and the killings of Philando Castile (2016) and Daunte Wright (2021) — that have caused nation-wide protests.

With these issues in mind, one song from Beyoncé’s catalog fit perfectly.

Stack-Eaton proposed to Hooten that she perform her floor routine to Beyoncé’s “Freedom” from her live performance at Coachella in 2018, where the artist became the first-ever Black woman to headline at the yearly music and arts festival.

Hooten quickly accepted the proposal as a no-brainer. She, along with Stack-Eaton, is a huge fan of Beyoncé.

“The message behind ‘Freedom’ spoke volumes. I was like, ‘We should definitely use this’ and Hooten agreed,” Stack-Eaton said. “She was like, ‘This is going to be amazing.’”

But while the two collaborated, they wanted Hooten’s routine to be more than just her performing to “Freedom” — so they decided to choreograph an energetic performance that also included underlying messages of empowerment throughout it.

Hooten opens up her floor routine, acting as a drum major on one knee with a whistle to signify the start of her performance.

Quickly, Hooten performs her first pass as she sprints diagonally across the floor to complete a roundoff, back handspring and 1/1 in tucked position skill, which she said is her hardest pass, before switching sides to complete her popa.

The sophomore phenom dazzles the crowd moments before sprinting diagonally across the floor another time to finish her second pass, where she completes a front handspring, front 1/1 with a pike. Then, the symbolism begins.

“After my second pass, I’m pushing away the people who don’t like the Black community,” Hooten said. “After that, I cover my mouth because sometimes you don’t have a voice. Then I get down on my knees, I’m getting arrested and I’m breaking the chains.”

After breaking the chains, Hooten gets up and “she’s free.” She then bends over and throws a few punches before walking off, where she hits her chest and then raises her fist in the air “because I’m proud of being Black,” she said.

To close out her routine, Hooten runs diagonally across the floor to finish her third and final pass, where she completes a roundoff, back handspring topped off with a double tuck, leaving the starstruck crowd on their feet at Maturi Pavilion.

Hooten debuted her new floor routine for the Gophers in their season-opener, scoring a 9.900 when they hosted UCLA and Iowa on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

“I got chills the entire time she did the routine the first time at the Pav,” Stack-Eaton said. “It’s just an incredible moment. I’m really so proud of Mya and how she’s been able to capitalize on this message.”

A week later against Michigan, Hooten earned the second perfect 10 of her career on floor, helping the Gophers set a new program-record floor team total at 49.725.

All of this wouldn’t have been possible without everyone, spanning from the leadership group at Minnesota to Hooten’s teammates, as they all collectively supported each other regarding social issues through uncomfortable conversations that were sometimes difficult to have.

Throughout last season, the Gophers donned “stronger together: together for change and unity” t-shirts after the murder of Floyd, a traumatizing time for many. The team wanted to bring awareness in light of Floyd’s recent death and better themselves, speaking volumes to where they want to go as a program and culture.

In February 2021, sophomore Ella Sirjord created a “stronger together” Instagram video with messages and words from a handful of athletes on the team with an overall pledge to listen, learn, act and take a stand against racial injustices.

“It opened a lot of people’s minds. We did have those hard conversations. It was really good for everyone to finally talk about things that they’ve struggled with or been through, and I think that was really good for the team,” Sirjord said. “We were all vulnerable at some points. It grew us as a team. I feel like, after having these hard conversations, we’re a lot closer.”

As fans continue to pack the stands at Maturi Pavilion throughout the season, Hooten wants them to recognize from her routine that while equality has progressed, that progression is not yet over as there’s still a need to push for change.

“She’s the true storyteller. I just wanted to try to make that come to life,” Stack-Eaton said of Hooten’s routine. “My hope is just to continue to have her inspire people and understand the message she is trying to portray. I think she’s done a phenomenal job so far.”

Gophers head coach Bob Motzko has liked the way his team has played since coming out of Christmas break.

Since the new year, the No. 10 Gophers men’s hockey team has posted a 4-2 record, including a series sweep against Michigan State.

Most recently, Minnesota (14-10) is coming off a split series against Michigan. They played strong hockey, and Motzko was not disappointed in his team’s effort throughout the weekend.

The Gophers made a comeback on Friday, Jan. 21 to win 2-1 in overtime, and despite losing Saturday evening 4-1, Minnesota outshot Michigan 40-19.

“We’re playing good hockey. That’s what I’m going to stick with right now,” Motzko said. “That’s what we have. We got to continue to play good hockey.”

As they head on the road to compete against No. 11/12 Notre Dame for the second series this season between the two teams, Minnesota will look to continue their success against the Fighting Irish.

After this weekend, Minnesota will be without junior co-captain Ben Meyers, sophomore Brock Faber and freshman Matthew Knies, who will compete for Team USA in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China.

Meyers and Knies lead Minnesota forwards in points with 25 and 23, respectively, through 24 games this season, while Faber ranks second in points for a defenseman with 11.

The Gophers swept Notre Dame at home earlier this season, led by junior Bryce Brodzinski and senior Blake McLaughlin. The two forwards combined for three goals and an assist as Minnesota outscored the Fighting Irish 7-3 over the two-game series.

Minnesota needs the line of Brodzinski, McLaughlin and senior co-captain Sammy Walker to “amp it up,” as Motzko said on Gopher Hockey Weekly. This weekend, the veteran line has that opportunity against a team they dominated earlier this season.

“I think it’s good for us to get on the road. We’ve all had success in this building, and hopefully, we can keep that rolling,” McLaughlin said. “Notre Dame’s a great team. They’re really well-coached and they play a great system of hockey.”

Minnesota has been playing great hockey lately.

The Gophers’s two keys now are: eliminate costly mistakes and convert on more power-play opportunities. In their loss Saturday night against Michigan, Motzko mentioned how the team “made three mistakes” that cost them.

“It’s cleaning up those mistakes that are going to matter come crunch time when the playoffs start,” sophomore Mike Koster said, reflecting on this past weekend. “We can always learn from those small mistakes that a good team can put in the back of the net.”

The puck drops against Notre Dame on Friday, Jan. 28, at 6:30 p.m., and Saturday, Jan. 29 at 5 p.m.