BEMIDJI, Minn. – The 2024-25 women's hockey season is here and the Bemidji State University Women's Hockey team hosts its season-opening series at Sanford Center this weekend. The Beavers play host to defending National Champions No. 5 Ohio State University for a two-game, Western Collegiate Hockey Association series beginning Sept. 27.
 
The Beavers (0-0-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) drop the puck on the new season Friday at 6:01 p.m., and conclude their series with the Buckeyes (0-2-0, 0-2-0 WCHA) Saturday at 3:01 p.m.
                                               
Both games in the series will be streamed online at B1G+ with Saturday's game also available on your television set on Fox9+. A radio broadcast for both games is also available courtesy of the Beaver Radio Network and can be found at 94.3 FM / 1300 AM or online at www.beaverradionetwork.com.
 
Bemidji State Notes

• The Amber Fryklund era for the BSU Women's Hockey team officially gets underway this weekend.
• Fryklund was hired as the sixth head coach in the Beaver women's hockey program in April of 2024 but has served on the Beaver coaching staff for 10 seasons including five as an Associate Head Coach.
• In her first season as head coach, Fryklund has welcomed back 15 returners from the 2023-24 season while adding 12 newcomers to the squad.
• The Beavers will have one graduate and six seniors lead the team followed by three juniors, eight sophomores, and nine freshmen.
• The Beavers' roster consists of 15 forwards, eight defensemen and four goaltenders.
• Senior Alyssa Watkins was voted by her peers to captain the team during the season and is the 40th team captain in the program's history. She is joined by senior Genevieve Hendrickson and junior Mya Headrick who will serve as alternate captains.
• Sophomore Hailey Armstrong highlights the team's top returners after leading the team in goals last season as a freshman. She finished the season with nine goals the most by a BSU freshman since Tara Hiscock (9) in 2004-05.
• The Beavers graduated four of its top five scorers from last season including 17 of the team's 42 goals (40.5%).
• BSU's strength this season is its defensive group and returns five defensemen who played key minutes during last season while also adding experience defensemen in Meredith Killian and Heidi Strompf.
• Sophomore goaltender Eva Filippova returns for the Beavers after leading the Beavers in games played (24), minutes (1156) and wins (4).
• Bemidji State's top returning goal scorers from last season are Armstrong (9), Talya Hendrickson (3), Watkins (3), Shelby Breiland (2), Kate Johnson (2) and Oliva Dronen (2).
• Three transfers join the team while eight freshmen and one international upperclassman debut for the green and white.
• Graduate goaltender Josie Bothun highlights the transfer list after playing four seasons at Penn State University where she broke the program's career records in wins (70) and shutouts (19).
• Also transferring to the Beavers this season is senior defenseman Meredith Killian (Union) and redshirt freshman forward Isa Goettl (Minnesota).
• Killian played three seasons at Union College and served as the team's captain during the 2023-24 season while Goettl appeared in one game for the Gophers but was awarded a redshirt following last season.
• Eight freshmen join the program for their first season in NCAA Division I women's hockey. The group consists of five forwards, one defenseman and two goaltenders.
• The Beavers' roster consists of 17 Minnesotan's, 19 from the U.S., five from Canada, and three from Europe.
• 2024-25 will be the 27th season in Bemidji State Women's Hockey history and the program is 275-542-80 (.351) in 897 games played.
• The Beavers welcome the defending National Champion Buckeyes to Sanford Center for their season opener.
• The Buckeyes started the 2024-25 season with a WCHA series against then-No. 7 Minnesota Duluth. Each game was decided by one goal, with the Bulldogs taking both games, 2-1 and 4-3.
• Bemidji State is 29-62-13 all-time against the Buckeyes and have lost the last 13 meetings including the last two in the first round of the WCHA Playoffs last year.
• Bemidji State's last victory against Ohio State came on Feb. 12, 2022 or 947 days.

For more information on the Bemidji State men's and women's hockey programs, tickets or schedules, visit BSUBeavers.com, follow the Beavers on X or Instagram (@BSUBeaversMHKY/@BSUBeaversWHKY), or like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers).
 
Located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's and women's hockey membership in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).
 
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