Women’s Hockey: BU, NU Both Bring Unbeaten Streaks to Beanpot Semifinals

By Michael Wax and Miranda Lemus

Boston University Women’s Ice Hockey (10-15-3, 9-12-3 HE) bring their six-game unbeaten streak into the 44th annual Women’s Beanpot, as they take on the No. 5 Northeastern University Huskies (25-2-1, 21-2-1 HE) in the semifinals on Tuesday at Conte Forum.

The Terriers and Huskies have met once this season, with Northeastern coming away with a 6-0 victory at Matthews Arena on Jan. 8. The Huskies have won four straight games over the Terriers, including a 3-0 win in the consolation game of the 2022 Beanpot. 

The Terriers are looking to bounce back from a 4-1 loss to Harvard in the semifinals of the 2022 Beanpot, while the Huskies fell 3-1 to the Boston College Eagles in the other semifinal. The Terriers are looking for their first Beanpot title since 2019, while the Huskies look to take back the title they last won in 2020, when they defeated the Terriers 4-3 in OT at Walter Brown Arena.

“If you have those bragging rights for the next 365 days, it’s the carrot that everyone’s trying to grab onto,” BU Women’s Head Coach Brian Durocher said.  

While BU trails the rest of the pack with only two Beanpot wins under their belt, the Terriers’ most recent win in 2019 came after a shootout win in the semifinal game against Northeastern and a 3-2 overtime win over Harvard. 

“I gotta tip my cap to Nara Elia, who scored when it was a ‘score or go home,’ and she scored to tie it,” Durocher said. “The next shooter was Reagan Rust after Corinne Schroeder stopped a player on Northeastern, and she went right over the top corner in the net and came back to me and said, ‘How the hell did you pick me, coach?’… I said ‘I knew you were gonna cash in.’ Then for Sammy Davis to finish it, being a local kid, on a nice pass from Jesse Compher the following weekend. Easy memory for me to take home on that Beanpot.”

The Terriers have much to prove this Tuesday as they face No. 5 Northeastern in the semifinal. The Huskies lead over the other local Boston schools with 17 Beanpot titles. Historically, the BU vs. NU match has weighed heavily in favor of the Huskies, as they lead 17-5-4 in Beanpot matches with the Terriers. 

Northeastern comes into the semifinal matchup on a 13-game winning streak, including victories over ranked opponents Cornell, Princeton, and Vermont (3x). 

In net, the Terriers and Huskies will both put their best foot forward. For Northeastern, senior goalie Gwyneth Philips leads all of college hockey in wins (25), save percentage (.960), goals against average (0.79), and shutouts (9).

For the Terriers, graduate student goalie Andrea Brändli comes into her first Beanpot since entering the program. Brändli’s .938 save percentage ranks fourth in the nation. 

“I’m super excited,” Brändli said. “I’ve got to be honest, I’d never heard of the Beanpot before I came to Boston, but it’s a huge tournament and I’m so happy to come into a school that has such a huge history in the Beanpot and just playing in that tournament means a lot to me.”

Brändli will have her work cut out for her, as the Huskies have three of the top 10 scorers in the nation coming into Tuesday’s matchup. Graduate forwards Alina Müller (17g, 24a), Chloé Aurard (16g, 24a) and Maureen Murphy (15g, 24a) all bring point streaks into the semifinals.

For the Terriers, senior forward Julia Nearis (10g, 9a) continues to be their leading scorer, with sophomore forward Christina Vote (3g, 13a) right behind her. Vote has five assists in her last three games, while junior forward Catherine Foulem has put up two goals and three assists in her last three games.

“I think keeping that winning streak would be awesome,” Foulem said. “Against Northeastern, it’s going to be a really tough game. We all have to buy in and give everything that we can to get the W and eventually win a Beanpot.”

The Terriers and Huskies will battle for a place in the 2023 Beanpot championship on Tuesday at BC’s Kelley Rink at Conte Forum. Puck drop is scheduled for 4 p.m.

Featured image by Claire Guest