Tag: Mark Johnson

LOOK: Wisconsin women’s hockey announces updates to 2024-25 slate

Wisconsin women’s hockey announces updates to 2024-25 schedule

Wisconsin’s women’s hockey program announced updates to its 2024-25 schedule on Monday.

The crew, captained by dynastic head coach Mark Johnson, will play a total of 34 regular season games before embarking on its quest for an eighth NCAA Tournament championship this winter.

The schedule includes seven home series and 15 total home contests from Sept. 27 through Feb. 22. Wisconsin kick-starts its season against Lindenwood on Friday, Sept. 27 and Saturday, Sept. 28, a few weeks before they welcome Minnesota Duluth to Madison’s La Bahn Arena.

UW also hosts Bemidji State in October, St. Thomas in November, Ohio State, Minnesota State and St. Cloud State in January and Minnesota in February.

Puck drop times for all of these matches will be released in the next few weeks. For more information about Wisconsin’s home schedule, click here.

The Badgers will also travel to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts to play Boston College the weekend of Oct. 4 and Minneapolis, Minnesota to play the Golden Gophers the weekend of Oct. 18.

St Cloud State (Nov. 1-2), Ohio State (Nov. 15-16), Maine (Nov. 29-30), Minnesota State, (Dec. 6-7) St. Thomas (Jan. 17-18), Minnesota Duluth (Jan 31-Feb. 1) and Bemidji State (Feb. 21-22) are included on UW’s away game list as well.

Wisconsin went 35-6 a season ago before falling to Ohio State in the NCAA title game. The program, which embodies consistency on the ice, will aim to reach the pinnacle of college hockey once more in late March.

Wisconsin hockey to compete in outdoor event at Wrigley Field

Wisconsin hockey to compete in outdoor event at Chicago’s Wrigley Field

Wisconsin’s men’s and women’s hockey programs will participate in ‘The Frozen Confines: Big Ten Hockey Series,’ an outdoor event at Chicago’s Wrigley Field this January, per Thursday’s release.

The two-day event features several Big Ten teams, including Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan State and Michigan. Mark Johnson’s women’s platoon will square off against the Buckeyes while Wisconsin’s men’s team will play the Spartans on Saturday, Jan. 4.

The contests are slated for 4:30 and 8 p.m. with the game order still awaiting a final scheduling.

This marks the first outdoor match for UW’s women’s group in 14 years while the men will showcase their skills for viewers outside for the first time since 2013.

The Badger men enter the 2024-25 campaign fresh off an impressive 26-12-2 overall record in 2023-24. The group secured multiple top-5 victories over both Minnesota and Michigan early in the season, Mike Hastings’ first year as head coach.

UW’s women, who amassed an incredible 35-6-0 mark in 2023-24, cruised to the NCAA Frozen Four title game against Ohio State. The Badgers ultimately dropped the contest 1-0. Nonetheless, Johnson’s cadre will aim to ride its momentum into this winter.

Tickets for January’s doubleheader will become available for public purchase on Friday, Aug. 30 at 10 a.m. CT through Wrigley Field. For more details, visit UWBadgers.com.

Wisconsin women’s hockey retains a pair of key contributors

Wisconsin women’s hockey retains a pair of key contributors

Wisconsin’s women’s hockey program announced the return of Casey O’Brien and Katie Kotlowski next season via social media on Wednesday.

Last season, O’Brien centered the Badgers’ front line as a First-Team All-American. The Milton, Massachusetts native was also a finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, signifying the best female college ice hockey player in the nation.

O’Brien appeared in all 41 games for the Badgers during her senior season, registered a career-high 73 points on 23 goals, and became the first Badger in program history to notch 50 assists in a season.

The forward has played in 142 career games for Wisconsin and has been a part of two championship teams in 2021 and 2023. 

Kotlowski, meanwhile, has been a multi-year contributor on defense for Wisconsin. The La Crosse product is another two-time national champion with the program.

This will be Kotlowski’s sixth year in Madison. Over her celebrated tenure, she has nine goals and 21 assists for 30 points in 138 career games.

The news arrives fewer than seven days following the departure of former Wisconsin women’s hockey forward Maddi Wheeler to Ohio State via the transfer portal.

For head coach Mark Johnson and company, maintaining this pair is a huge boost for a program that has punched a ticket to the championship game in four of the last five seasons.

Wisconsin approves contract extension for men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard

Wisconsin approves contract extension for men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard

The University of Wisconsin Athletic Board approved a contract extension for men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard on Friday.

The extension is a procedural move and was done for all of the organization’s winter coaches. It extends Gard’s contract through May 31, 2029. He remains one of the highest-paid coaches in the sport.

Related: An updated look at Wisconsin basketball’s 2024-25 roster after Chucky Hepburn’s departure

Gard will enter his 10th season manning the sidelines for the Badgers during the 2024-2025 campaign. Since taking over for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Bo Ryan, Gard has led Wisconsin to six NCAA Tournament appearances and was named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2022.

Wisconsin Athletic Director Chris McIntosh previously expressed a vote of confidence in Gard after the conclusion of the team’s 2023-24 season.

The Cobb, Wisconsin native boasts the third-highest winning percentage (.635) in program history, trailing only the aforementioned Ryan (.737) and Walter Meanwell (.712).

The Badgers has experienced a seismic shift in personnel over the past few weeks. Chucky Hepburn, AJ Storr, Tyler Wahl and Conor Essegian are among eight Badgers to depart Madison via graduation or the transfer portal.

Gard is firmly in place to guide the program through a turbulent offseason.

Alongside Gard, the UW Athletic Board approved the extensions of five other winter head coaches — Marisa Moseley (women’s basketball), Yuri Suguiyama (swimming and diving), Mike Hastings (men’s hockey), Mark Johnson (women’s hockey) and Chris Bono (wrestling).

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Wisconsin women’s hockey unable to repeat as NCAA champs

Wisconsin women’s hockey unable to repeat as NCAA champs

The Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team was unable to repeat as national champions Sunday, losing to Ohio State 1-0 in the NCAA title game. In a rematch of last year’s championship matchup, the Buckeyes got the better of the Badgers this time around.

Knotted up at 0-0 through the first two periods, the both teams’ defenses were showcased throughout the contest with Ohio State freshman Joy Donne finally placing one in the net with 7:12 remaining in the third period.

The teams were as evenly matched as possible with Ohio State taking 28 shots and the Badgers with 26, while both teams had no penalties.

Although Wisconsin wasn’t able to repeat as national champions, they did appear in their 11th NCAA title game (seven-time winners) while being a part of their 15th Frozen Four, all of which have come since 2006.

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Wisconsin women’s hockey back in the national championship

The Wisconsin women’s hockey team will face off with Ohio State in the National Championship on Sunday

The Wisconsin women’s hockey team will face off with Ohio State in the National Championship on Sunday in Durham, New Hampshire. The Badgers defeated Colgate 3-1 in the semifinals Friday, setting up a rematch with the Buckeyes.

Mark Johnson’s squad is the reigning national champions, taking down Ohio State 1-0 in the title game last March, securing their seventh championship in program history.

In five contests against the Buckeyes this season, Wisconsin has gone 2-3, but they have won the last two matchups, including a 6-3 victory in the WCHA Final Faceoff title game on March 9.

The Badgers come into Sunday’s contest red-hot, winners of seven games in a row, while the Buckeyes took down Clarkson 4-1 in the semifinals Friday.

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