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MINNEAPOLIS — “Good teams are led by coaches,” Ohio State women's hockey coach Nadine Muzerall said at Frozen Four media day. “Elite teams are led by players.”
That’s how Muzerall expressed her faith in her senior leadership group Thursday before going even further and calling them “family.”
Ohio State's fifth-year players have advanced to the Frozen Four every season, winning the national championship in 2022 and 2024. But they’ve never had to lead the group.
After graduating 10 players from the 2024 title-winning team and starting this season with a relatively young roster, this year’s seniors and grad students had to step up. Muzerall believes they’ve done that and then some.
“I've learned a lot from these players - more than anybody else,” she said. “They're special to me. They're there through the highs and the lows, and I think that speaks on their character. They don't just show up when times are good. They've learned a lot. They had to put a lot of weight on their shoulders with 10 players graduating, and now they were responsible to be the leaders. I think they've done a great job.”
Despite the run of five appearances to the sport's final weekend, captain Jenna Buglioni said it never gets old, and she never takes it for granted. She knows it’s not a given.
“Each year it’s a new team, and you have to focus on what you have,” she said. “Our group of girls is amazing. They dove into this season head-on. I think for us, it's just taking care of the details of our game. There's always going to be nerves, and those nerves don't necessarily go away, no matter how long you've been here.”
The Buckeyes will face Cornell in the first semifinal at 5 p.m. Friday. Ohio State beat the Big Red 7-3 in October. It was a one-goal game until Jocelyn Amos’ short-hander with 39.2 seconds left in the second.
Muzerall said she told her team to erase the memory of that game because it’s irrelevant. That's especially true because the Ivy League starts its season about a month after most teams, so it was just Cornell’s fourth game of the season while the Buckeyes had already played 12 and were two weeks into their conference schedule.
Cornell is on a 16-game unbeaten streak (14 wins, two ties) dating back to early January, and the Big Red won the Ivy League title as well as both the regular-season and conference-tournament ECAC titles. That’s thanks in part to sophomore goalie Annelies Bergmann, who was a top-three finalist for Goalie of the Year. Freshman Lindzi Avar, who leads the team with 15 goals, was the Ivy League and Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Rookie of the Year.
Ohio State enters with the No. 2 offense in the country, averaging 3.89 goals per game. Cornell has the No. 2 defense in the country, allowing just 1.38 goals per game.
“They have some very solid defensive play, systematic, great goaltending," Muzerall said. "I think (Doug Derraugh) is one of the best coaches in the country, and I have a lot of admiration for him and his style of hockey.
“I think it's going to be a fantastic Friday night.”
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Frozen Four 2025: Ohio State women's hockey faces Cornell Friday
Continue reading...
That’s how Muzerall expressed her faith in her senior leadership group Thursday before going even further and calling them “family.”
Ohio State's fifth-year players have advanced to the Frozen Four every season, winning the national championship in 2022 and 2024. But they’ve never had to lead the group.
After graduating 10 players from the 2024 title-winning team and starting this season with a relatively young roster, this year’s seniors and grad students had to step up. Muzerall believes they’ve done that and then some.
“I've learned a lot from these players - more than anybody else,” she said. “They're special to me. They're there through the highs and the lows, and I think that speaks on their character. They don't just show up when times are good. They've learned a lot. They had to put a lot of weight on their shoulders with 10 players graduating, and now they were responsible to be the leaders. I think they've done a great job.”
Despite the run of five appearances to the sport's final weekend, captain Jenna Buglioni said it never gets old, and she never takes it for granted. She knows it’s not a given.
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“Each year it’s a new team, and you have to focus on what you have,” she said. “Our group of girls is amazing. They dove into this season head-on. I think for us, it's just taking care of the details of our game. There's always going to be nerves, and those nerves don't necessarily go away, no matter how long you've been here.”
The Buckeyes will face Cornell in the first semifinal at 5 p.m. Friday. Ohio State beat the Big Red 7-3 in October. It was a one-goal game until Jocelyn Amos’ short-hander with 39.2 seconds left in the second.
Muzerall said she told her team to erase the memory of that game because it’s irrelevant. That's especially true because the Ivy League starts its season about a month after most teams, so it was just Cornell’s fourth game of the season while the Buckeyes had already played 12 and were two weeks into their conference schedule.
Cornell is on a 16-game unbeaten streak (14 wins, two ties) dating back to early January, and the Big Red won the Ivy League title as well as both the regular-season and conference-tournament ECAC titles. That’s thanks in part to sophomore goalie Annelies Bergmann, who was a top-three finalist for Goalie of the Year. Freshman Lindzi Avar, who leads the team with 15 goals, was the Ivy League and Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Rookie of the Year.
Ohio State enters with the No. 2 offense in the country, averaging 3.89 goals per game. Cornell has the No. 2 defense in the country, allowing just 1.38 goals per game.
“They have some very solid defensive play, systematic, great goaltending," Muzerall said. "I think (Doug Derraugh) is one of the best coaches in the country, and I have a lot of admiration for him and his style of hockey.
“I think it's going to be a fantastic Friday night.”
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Frozen Four 2025: Ohio State women's hockey faces Cornell Friday
Continue reading...
