Park Ridge, Ill. – The Big Ten office announced the conference schedule for the 2014 football season today, as approved by the Big Ten Directors of Athletics. The 2014 schedule will consist of eight games for each of the Big Ten’s 14 teams, feature a new division alignment, include the conference debut of Maryland and Rutgers and culminate with the fourth annual Big Ten Football Championship Game.

The 2014 Big Ten season begins on Sept. 13, with Rutgers making its Big Ten debut by hosting fellow East Division member Penn State. Maryland will take part in its first Big Ten game two weeks later on Sept. 27 with an East Division matchup at Indiana. Four other conference games will be held on Sept. 27, including two West Division matchups with Illinois at Nebraska and Iowa at Purdue and two cross-division contests with Minnesota at Michigan and Northwestern at Penn State. The Oct. 4 schedule will feature the Terrapins’ first home Big Ten game against fellow East Division member Ohio State along with an East Division matchup in Michigan at Rutgers and West Division contests in Nebraska at Michigan State, Purdue at Illinois and Wisconsin at Northwestern.

 From Sept. 27 to Nov. 29, the 2014 Big Ten schedule will feature 10 consecutive weeks of Big Ten competition, boasting at least five conference games each week. All 14 teams will be in action during the final two weeks of Big Ten play, including six division games each week. The final weekend of the 2014 season begins with Nebraska at Iowa in a matchup of West Division rivals on Friday, Nov. 28. The Saturday, Nov. 29, schedule feature two more West Division matchups in Illinois at Northwestern and Minnesota at Wisconsin, three East Division contests in Michigan at Ohio State, Michigan State at Penn State and Rutgers at Maryland and a cross-division game with Purdue at Indiana. The winners of each division will meet in the 2014 Big Ten Football Championship Game, scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 6, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

 Beginning in 2014, the Big Ten football division alignments will feature Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers in the East Division and Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin in the West Division. Each school will play the other six schools in its division plus two teams from the other division in 2014 and 2015, which will serve as transitional years in which the schools will still be playing eight-game schedules. Beginning in 2016, each school will play three teams from the other division as part of its nine-game schedule. The cross-division games will include one protected matchup on an annual basis between Indiana and Purdue.

 The Big Ten will hold the 2013 Football Media Days and 42nd annual Kickoff Luncheon on Wednesday and Thursday, July 24 and 25, at the Hilton Chicago, featuring all 12 head coaches and some of the nation’s top returning players. The 118th season of Big Ten football kicks off Thursday, August 29, and culminates with the third annual Big Ten Football Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 7, to be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and televised by FOX. The winner of the title game will earn the Big Ten Championship and a chance to play in either the Rose Bowl Game or Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game.

MADISON, Wis. — Less than a month after being honored with the Coaches vs. Cancer Champion Award at the Final Four in Atlanta, Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan proved exactly why he earned such a prestigious honor.

 At last Saturday night’s annual gala, Ryan and the Wisconsin chapter of Coaches vs. Cancer teamed up to raise a record $693,000 toward the fight against cancer.

 An event which began in 2008 and raised $56,000, the Wisconsin Gala has ballooned into the largest Coaches vs. Cancer fundraising event in the nation.

“The Coaches vs. Cancer Gala was a phenomenal event and I’m so proud of the way our people stepped up. We were really blown away,” Ryan, who served as the national spokesman for Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers campaign, said after the event. “My wife, Kelly and I kept looking at each other throughout, just amazed at the generosity.

 “We set a record last year with $456,000 raised, and we were hoping to break that, but this was beyond our expectations. I’m always thinking about ‘Next,’ and this sets the bar pretty high for next year… but I think we can break it.”

 In an event jointly hosted by Ryan, UW-Milwaukee coach Rob Jeter, UW-Parkside coach Luke Reigel, UW-Platteville coach Jeff Gard, and Edgewood College coach Justin Meyer, the 2013 Wisconsin Coaches vs. Cancer Gala hosted a sellout crowd of more than 700 attendants. The evening featured dinner, a live auction and special guest speaker Tim Brando of CBS Sports. Like Ryan, Brando came away very impressed.

“I have been a part of many charity events on college campuses but never one as inclusive with other state schools in other divisions of intercollegiate athletics,” Brando said. “Bo has done a great job networking basketball and the fight against cancer in Wisconsin. The hospitality was tremendous and I was happy to play a role in the event’s success this year.”

 Over the past six years, Coaches vs. Cancer Wisconsin has raised more than $2 million to support the American Cancer Society’s mission to save lives and create more birthdays by helping people stay well and get well, by finding cures and fighting back. At the University of Wisconsin, the American Cancer Society has funded over $44 million in research since 1947.

 On April 5, Ryan was given the 2013 American Cancer Society Coaches vs. Cancer Champion Award, presented annually to a college coach who has been significantly engaged in the program’s fundraising, education and promotional initiatives and who has demonstrated leadership in supporting the American Cancer Society’s fight to save lives from cancer.

From what Matt says, it took Ann about seven minutes, not that he was counting, to come running down the stairs and exclaim, “You got the job!?”

The Walsh family had talked about what would happen if the day came when Walsh could take off the interim label from his title and become a full-time assistant coach for his alma mater. Currently living in Janesville, one of those discussions centered on whether a move closer to Madison would make sense, which is why Matt used the “For Sale” sign as the hint.

The family’s living arrangements may now be in question, but they know where Matt will spend much of his time next hockey season.

It now becomes a seamless transition for the Badger men’s hockey program as it moves towards its first season in the Big Ten Conference.

“I think having Matt with us since November, we were able to see first-hand how he interacts with college students and the work that he does on the ice,” said Head Coach Mike Eaves. “It became clear as time went on, that he was very capable of doing the job here.

“We also got to know him as a man, we got to know his family and it all matches up really well.

“We went through due diligence in the process,” explained Eaves. “We had many people apply. I talked to a handful of people who I thought might be serious candidates and chatted with them, but in the end it all came back to Matt and what he did for us this year.”

Walsh will continue his duties coaching the defensemen, while also getting more involved in recruiting.

“Since the end of the season, this has been a question mark,” explained Walsh. “I felt like I could do this and I wanted to do this. The interim position was good for me. It was like an internship where I got to really know what the job is like.

“Hockey has been a passion of mine for a long, long time and now I get to continue to help the program like I felt I did throughout the course of the year. I think going forward, the details I can work on with the players, especially the defenseman, and building on the relationships we’ve built to get what we need done will help make the players successful, the team successful and the program successful.”

Walsh’s Badger coaching career began last Nov. 23, the day after Thanksgiving and the day of the start of a Kohl Center series against Minnesota State. Following the weekend, the Badgers owned a 1-7-2 record.

After a full week in his role as interim assistant coach, Walsh and the Badgers skated 11 consecutive games without a loss and the squad began a four-month surge that culminated in a WCHA playoff crown and an NCAA tournament bid.

There were various factors that combined to fuel the turnaround, but as the coach of Wisconsin’s defensemen, the Badgers went on to lead all WCHA teams in league games with a 2.29 goals-against-per-game average. The team’s 2.12 goals-against-per-game average in all contests was good enough to rank sixth in the nation.

A member of Wisconsin’s 1983 NCAA championship team as a freshman defenseman, Walsh played for the Badgers from 1982-86, winning the WHA-TV Jim Santulli Seventh-Man Award his senior season.

As Coach-in-Chief for USA Hockey’s Central District since 1995, Walsh had been responsible for coordinating seminars for USA Hockey’s Coaching Education Program over a six-state area. In 2003, Walsh represented USA Hockey’s Coaching Education Program at an International Ice Hockey Federation World Development Camp, where he presented to coaches from around the world.

“From being entrenched in the Central District for USA Hockey, there are a lot of people you get to know here,” said Walsh. “And from working on a national level, whether it is with the coaching program, or the select festivals, you get to know people all across the nation. If I can add a few different areas and contacts for recruiting that maybe we haven’t been involved with before and that helps the program, which is a benefit.”

Throughout his time with USA Hockey, he has served as an evaluator for various USA Hockey Select 15, 16 and 17 teams. He also co-coached Select 15 and 16 district teams.

Head coach of Team Wisconsin from 1991-96 and again in 1998 and 1999, the Madison, Wis., native was also an assistant coach for the team from 1988-90. The team is made up of the top 20 seniors from Wisconsin.

From 1994-96, Walsh was head coach of the Stoughton High School squad.

“Wisconsin hockey is something I’ve been a part of since going to hockey games when I was eight years old,” Walsh concluded. “Now to actually come full circle as a coach here and try to improve the program and make it the best in the nation — that is the goal.”

 The Badgers and Cavaliers will play the second night of competition on Wednesday, Dec. 4. Game time and  television network have yet to be determined.  Wisconsin will be looking to avenge a 60-54 loss when the two teams meet in the 2013 challenge. UW is 6-8 all-time in the Challenge, recording victories in three of the last five seasons.

 The Badgers trail only Illinois (7) for the most victories among Big Ten teams. Wisconsin’s winning percentage (.429) is tied for fifth behind Illinois (.500), Ohio State (.500) Purdue (.500) and Michigan State (.462).  The Badgers are coming off their 15th-consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament after earning 23 victories in 2012-13, the ninth-highest win total in school history.

 Virginia, which is 8-5 overall in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge and owns a 5-1 home record, is coming off an appearance in the 2013 NIT. Led by former UW assistant Tony Bennett, the Cavaliers finished 23-12 overall after suffering a 75-64 loss to Iowa in the quarterfinals of the tournament.

 Next season’s matchup promises to be a defensive showcase as Virginia and Wisconsin finished fifth and seventh, respectively, in the country last season in scoring defense. The Badgers yielded just 55.9 points per game, while the Cavaliers gave up only 55.6 points per contest.

 The ACC won the first 10 Challenges, but the Big Ten is unbeaten in the last four after last season’s inter-conference duel ended in a tie.

2013 ACC/BIG TEN MEN’S BASKETBALL CHALLENGE

Tuesday, Dec. 3

• Florida State at Minnesota

• Illinois at Georgia Tech

• Indiana at Syracuse

• Michigan at Duke

• Notre Dame at Iowa

• Penn State at Pittsburgh

Wednesday, December 4

• Boston College at Purdue

• Maryland at Ohio State

• Miami, FL at Nebraska

• North Carolina at Michigan State

• Northwestern at North Carolina State

• Wisconsin at Virginia

MADISON, Wis. – More than 13 years after running to the top of the NCAA career rushing list, former Wisconsin running back Ron Dayne has been chosen to join an elite group. On Tuesday, the National Football Foundation announced that Dayne will be immortalized as part of the College Football Hall of Fame Class of 2013.

“I’m very excited and thrilled to be mentioned with the greatest names in college football history,” Dayne said. “This is a tremendous honor for me and the university. As with everything in my career, I see this as a team honor and something I never could have achieved without my teammates and coaches.”

 Dayne finished his career as college football’s all-time leading rusher. The official NCAA record book credits him with 6,397 career rushing yards, most in FBS history. Including bowl games, Dayne rushed for 7,125 total yards as a Badger.

 As a senior, Dayne became the second player in Badgers’ history to win the Heisman Trophy, racking up 2,034 rushing yards and scoring 20 touchdowns. That year he also won the Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, Doak Walker Award, Chicago Tribune Silver Football and was a unanimous, consensus first-team All-American.

 Dayne helped lead UW to back-to-back Big Ten titles and Rose Bowl championships in 1998 and 1999. A member of the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame, he is one of just four players to ever be named MVP of “The Grandaddy of Them All” twice.

 Dayne burst onto the college football scene as a freshman, running for a then-FBS record 1,863 yards in the regular season (Adrian Peterson broke the record with 1,925 yards as a freshman in 2004). Dayne added 246 yards and Copper Bowl MVP honors to finish the season with 2,109 yards despite not starting the first four games of the season.

 As a sophomore, Dayne was a finalist for the Doak Walker Award and a first-team All-American from College Football News. Despite missing two full games and parts of two others, he still ranked fifth nationally with an average of 142.0 rushing yards per game (1,457 total yards).

 Dayne was again a finalist for the Doak Walker Award as a junior, leading the Big Ten in rushing and earning Walter Camp first-team All-America honors. He led the Badgers’ upset of No. 6 UCLA in the 1999 Rose Bowl, rushing for 246 yards and earning game MVP honors. That game also set the stage for his Heisman Trophy campaign the following season.

“In my opinion, Ron was simply the most dominant running back that ever played college football,” said Dayne’s former coach, current Wisconsin Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez. “If the rules back then were the same as they are now, with bowl games counting towards his career rushing total, no one would even come close to touching his record. We’ve had a lot of great players come through here but when people think of Wisconsin football, they think of Ron Dayne running the football.”

 Dayne’s No. 33 was officially retired by Wisconsin in 2007. He was elected to the UW Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009.

 Dayne becomes the 11th former Badgers’ player or coach to be elected to the College Football Hall of Fame. The most recent inductee was his former coach, as Alvarez was a member of the Class of 2010. Dayne is the fourth former UW running back in the Hall of Fame, joining Wisconsin’s only other Heisman Trophy winner, Alan Ameche, along with Pat Harder and Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch.

The 2013 College Football Hall of Fame Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) Class will be inducted at the 56th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 10, 2013, at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. They will be honored guests at the National Hall of Fame Salute at the Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on Jan. 2, 2014 and officially enshrined in the summer of 2014.

Badgers in the College Football H.O.F.

Barry Alvarez, Coach, Class of 2010
Alan Ameche, RB, Class of 1975
Marty Below, OL, Class of 1988
Robert Butler, OL, Class of 1972
Ron Dayne, RB, Class of 2013
Pat Harder, FB, Class of 1993
“Crazylegs” Hirsch, RB, Class of 1974
George Little, Coach, Class of 1962
Pat O’Dea, P, Class of 1962
Pat Richter, WR, Class of 1996
Dave Schreiner, End, Class of 1955

Park Ridge, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference office announced football division alignments set to begin in 2014 and nine-game conference schedules set to start in 2016.  The changes were unanimously recommended by conference directors of athletics and supported by the Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors.

 “Big Ten directors of athletics concluded four months of study and deliberation with unanimous approval of a future football structure that preserved rivalries and created divisions based on their primary principle of East/West geography,” said Big Ten Commissioner James E. Delany.  “The directors of athletics also relied on the results of a fan survey commissioned by BTN last December to arrive at their recommendation, which is consistent with the public sentiment expressed in the poll.”

 The new division alignments will feature Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers in the East Division and Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin in the West Division. All schools in the East Division are in the eastern time zone and all schools in the West Division are in the central time zone with the exception of Purdue. Each school will play the other six schools in its division plus two teams from the other division in 2014 and 2015, which will serve as transitional years in which the schools will still be playing eight-game schedules. Beginning in 2016, each school will play three teams from the other division as part of its nine-game schedule. The cross-division games will include one protected matchup on an annual basis between Indiana and Purdue.

 With the start of the nine-game conference schedule in 2016, teams from the East Division will host five conference home games during even-numbered years, while teams from the West Division will host five conference home games during odd-numbered years. As a result of the nine-game conference schedule and the Big Ten’s schedule rotation, every student-athlete will have the opportunity to play against every other team in the conference at least once during a four-year period. The Big Ten is returning to a nine-game conference schedule for all teams for the first time since the 1983 and 1984 seasons.

 “Big Ten directors of athletics met in person or by conference call six times from December to March to discuss a new Big Ten football model,” Delany said.  “The level of cooperation and collaboration was reflective of what we’ve come to expect from this group of administrators who have worked extremely well together on a number of complex matters over the past several years.  We are all looking forward to ushering in this new era of Big Ten football.”

 The Big Ten will hold the 2013 Football Media Days and 42nd annual Kickoff Luncheon on Wednesday and Thursday, July 24 and 25, at the Hilton Chicago, featuring all 12 head coaches and some of the nation’s top returning players. The 118th season of Big Ten football kicks off Thursday, August 29, and culminates with the third annual Big Ten Football Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 7, to be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and televised by FOX. The winner of the title game will earn the Big Ten Championship and a chance to play in either the Rose Bowl Game or Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game.

 MADISON, Wis. – In what seems to be a yearly event, when Wisconsin and Ohio State meet in Columbus on Sept. 28, the game will be played in prime time on either ABC or ESPN. It will mark the fourth time in the last six seasons the two teams have played a night game, and the fifth time since 2003.

 The 2013 game will kick off at 7 p.m. CT on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2. This will be the ninth straight year Wisconsin has played at least one night game. Over the past five seasons, 16 of UW’s 67 games (24 percent) have been played at night.

 Overall, Wisconsin owns a 37-25 record in night games. Dating back to 1995, the Badgers are 31-6 in their last 37 games at night. Against Ohio State, UW is 2-2 in night games. The average margin of victory for the winning team in those four games is 6.8 points.

 MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin football team will play a home-and-home series with USF, the two schools announced on Friday. The Badgers and Bulls will square off on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2014 at Camp Randall Stadium and on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017 in Tampa.

 “We obviously recruit a lot in the state of Florida and these games will be great for our exposure down there,” UW head coach Gary Andersen said. “USF is traditionally a strong program so it’s exciting to get a quality opponent on the schedule for our players and the fans.”

 Wisconsin and USF have never faced each other. The Bulls have been to six bowl games in the last eight years and have won at least eight games in five of the last seven seasons.

 Both UW and USF have new coaches in 2013, Gary Andersen for the Badgers and Willie Taggart for the Bulls.

The Big Ten announced on Sunday the bracket for the 2013 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament, with Indiana earning the No. 1 seed for the first time after claiming its first outright Big Ten Championship since 1993. The 2013 event, which sold out all tickets in advance for the first time in conference history, will be played Thursday through Sunday, March 14-17, at the United Center in Chicago.

Indiana finished the Big Ten slate with a 14-4 record in conference play to win their 21st Big Ten Championship and first since sharing the title in 2002. The Hoosiers secured the top seed in the tournament, while Ohio State, Michigan State and Wisconsin also earned first-round byes. The Hoosiers previous highest seed was No. 3 in the 1999, 2007 and 2008 events. The Buckeyes and Spartans ended the season tied for second with 13-5 conference marks. The two teams split their regular season meetings, but Ohio State won the tiebreaker to earn the No. 2 seed based on a better record against Indiana. The Buckeyes have now claimed a top-three seed in four straight tournaments. Michigan State is the No. 3 seed, its fourth top-three seed in the last five events. Wisconsin and Michigan concluded regular season action tied for fourth place, but the Badgers clinched the No. 4 seed based on a home win over the Wolverines earlier this year. Wisconsin has now earned a top-four seed for the 12^th straight year and a first-round bye in 13 straight tournaments.

The tournament will tip off at 11 a.m. CT on Thursday, March 14, as No. 8 Illinois takes on No. 9 Minnesota, followed by No. 5 Michigan facing No. 12 Penn State, both on BTN. Thursday’s second session tips off at 5:30 p.m. CT as No. 7 Purdue challenges No. 10 Nebraska before No. 6 Iowa squares off against No. 11 Northwestern, both on ESPN2. The Illini, Gophers and Boilermakers all ended the regular season tied for seventh in the Big Ten with 8-10 marks, but Purdue earned the No. 7 seed based on the best record amongst the group, followed by Illinois and Minnesota.

The second day of the tournament tips off on Friday with top-seeded Indiana battling the winner of Thursday’s Illinois/Minnesota game at 11 a.m. CT, to be followed by fourth-seeded Wisconsin playing the winner of the Michigan/Penn State matchup, with both games appearing on ESPN. Friday’s second session will be broadcast by BTN and begins with second-seeded Ohio State facing the victor of Thursday’s Purdue/Nebraska contest at 5:30 p.m. CT before the quarterfinals conclude with third-seeded Michigan State squaring off against the Iowa/Northwestern winner.

Big Ten Tournament semifinal games will be played on Saturday, beginning at 12:40 p.m. CT on CBS Sports. The championship game tips off at 2:30 p.m. CT on Sunday and will also be broadcast by CBS Sports.

Six different programs have won the Big Ten Tournament. Michigan State and Ohio State have won the title three times. Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin have each won the championship twice, and Purdue has won the tournament once. Tournament championship games have featured teams seeded as high as first, second and third and as low as eighth, ninth, 10th and 11th. Nine different schools have advanced to the tournament’s championship game.

The 2013 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament returns to Chicago, which hosted the inaugural event in 1998 and will serve as the site for the eighth time in the tournament’s 16-year history. The conference tournament averaged 18,882 fans per session when the event was last held at the United Center in 2007. The men’s tournament set total and average attendance records while in Chicago in 2001 with 109,769 fans in attendance for an average of 21,954 patrons per session.

Several fan events surround this year’s men’s tournament, including the Daley Plaza Hoops Fest, Tip-Off Luncheon, Big Ten Youth Fitness Program, Big Ten Books for Baskets and Restaurant Pairings Program. For more information on ancillary events, go to bigtenchicagohoops.com.

Seven different Big Ten teams have been ranked among the nation’s top 25 this season, including five programs appearing in the most recent Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls. Indiana entered the week ranked second in the country in both polls. The Hoosiers are one of two Big Ten teams to earn the No. 1 ranking this season along with Michigan. Illinois, Michigan State, Minnesota and Ohio State have also appeared among the top 10 this season, while Wisconsin has been ranked among the top 20.

MADISON, Wis. – As it continues its second-half surge, Wisconsin (11-8-5, 8-5-5 WCHA) knew it wouldn’t be able to consistently win by margins such as the 5-2 victory it had earned the night before against Alaska Anchorage (3-16-5, 1-15-4).
“I wish, and the players wish, that every game would be like last night,” head coach Mike Eaves said. “But that’s not reality. These are nights where you’ve got to find ways to solve the riddle.”

It’s those riddles and close contests that Eaves believes really test and define a team. Good teams find a way to solve them.

The Badgers did just that on Saturday night, holding off the Seawolves for the 2-1 win to sweep the weekend and season series (4-0-0) and extend their conference unbeaten streak to 10-straight games (7-0-3).

Finding a way to end up on the right side of tight battles such as Saturday night’s have defined the turnaround and grit of the Badgers during the second half of the season.

“The strides we’ve made over the year are pretty amazing,” Tyler Barnes (Eagan, Minn.) said. “I think that’s the biggest thing we’ve changed is we’ve gotten used to the guys we’re playing with and we have more trust in the guys we’re playing with.

“Things are going more smoothly and the hard is still there. That’s where we need to keep the focus.”

That newfound focus has been a key to the Badgers’ continued climb up the standings. Once tied for 10th in the WCHA standings, Wisconsin has moved itself up into a tie for fourth place. The Badgers began the weekend in eighth place, but now sit just four points out of first.

Alaska Anchorage came out with plenty of energy and held most of the momentum throughout the first period. The Seawolves outshot the Badgers seven-to-three through the first period, while also holding Wisconsin without a shot on goal for the first 11 minutes of play.

“We’ve been here, we know that we’re better, and we need to go out there and go back to basics,” Eaves said his message was to the team after the first period. “It was more of a reminder.”

The Badgers came out in the second period with a re-focused effort, as Barnes finally got the team on the board at the 1:22 mark of the period. Barnes cut to the net on the rush, took a feed from Jefferson Dahl (Eau Claire, Wis.), then stuffed the puck past the goaltender to give Wisconsin the 1-0 lead. Nic Kerdiles (Irvine, Calif.) was also credited with the assist on the play.

It was the sixth goal for Barnes, the second on the weekend and also his third against the Seawolves this season.

Dahl recorded his second point of the night and extended the Badgers’ lead, scoring on a rebound in front of net to give UW the 2-0 lead at the 4:31 mark of the period. Brad Navin (Waupaca, Wis.) and Frankie Simonelli (Bensenville, Ill.) were credited with assists on the play.

The Seawolves would continue to make a game of things, however, after Dahl was called for holding to put Alaska Anchorage on a power play late in the second period. With the man advantage, Jordan Kwas freed himself up back door and got the puck past UW goaltender Landon Peterson (Oregon, Wis.) in to cut Wisconsin’s lead to 2-1 with just a minute left in the period.

“In practice, he does not like any pucks to get behind him,” Eaves said of Peterson. “He battles on every shot. It’s one of the reasons that he has the numbers that he has.”

Peterson played a big role in helping the Badgers battled off the late rally of the Seawolves, denying a number of third-period scoring opportunities and recording 21 saves on the night to earn his fifth win of the season (5-2-2).

“You have to come in prepared and focused each and every day at practice and every night during the weekend,” Peterson said. “Joel (Rumpel) and I are both playing well, so you just have to stay focused all the time.”

Playing well as a whole, Wisconsin next travels to Grand Forks, N.D., where it faces off against North Dakota. WCHA standing implications will be on the line, as the UND and the Badgers are tied for fourth place in the conference. Opening faceoff is set for 7:30 p.m. (CT) on Friday and 7 p.m. on Saturday. Both games are scheduled to air on Fox College Sports.