Minnesota's duo of Abbey Murphy and Hannah Clark were joined by Ohio State's Riley Brengman and Bemidji State's Kaitlin Groess in claiming this week's Western Collegiate Hockey Association weekly awards presented by OS Hockey.
After helping their team to a top-four series sweep, Minnesota's Murphy and Clark claimed the Forward of the Week and Goaltender of the Week honors, respectively. Ohio State's Brengman claimed her first Defender of the Week honor of the season as she helped guide the Buckeyes to a defeat of No. 1 Wisconsin. Bemidji State's Groess was tabbed the Rookie of the Week for her performance in the Beavers' series sweep of St. Thomas.
WCHA Forward of the Week
Abbey Murphy, R-Sr., Minnesota (Evergreen Park, Ill.)
For the first time this season, Minnesota's Abbey Murphy was named the WCHA Forward of the Week after helping the Gophers to a road sweep over No. 4 Minnesota Duluth. In the Gophers' 4-1 victory on Friday, Murphy tallied the game-winning goal as well as two assists. The redshirt senior followed up on Saturday with two assists, with the first assist marking her 150th career point.
Other Nominees: Kate Johnson, Bemidji State; Jamie Nelson, Minnesota State; Joy Dunne, Oho State; Lacey Eden, Wisconsin.
WCHA Defender of the Week
Riley Brengman, Gr., Ohio State (China, Mich.)
Ohio State's Riley Brengman led the Buckeyes with six blocked shots and a +3 in the series split against No. 1 Wisconsin as she earned her first Defender of the Week honor of the season. Brengman also tallied one assist in both games for a two-point weekend. The China, Michigan native helped the Buckeye defense hold Wisconsin, who averaged over six goals per game entering the weekend, to a three-goals-per-game average.
Other Nominees: Sydney Morrow, Minnesota; JuliAnna Gazdik, Minnesota State; Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin.
WCHA Goaltender of the Week
Hannah Clark, Fr., Minnesota (Oshawa, Ontario)
Minnesota's Clark claimed her first Goaltender of the Week honor after notching a season and career-high 58 saves in the Gophers' series sweep of Minnesota Duluth. In Saturday's 3-2 victory, the rookie recorded a single-game high of 31 saves. On the weekend, the rookie goaltender tallied a .950 save percentage en route to earning her first career sweep over a top-four program.
Other Nominees: Kaitlin Groess, Bemidji State; Hailey Hansen, Minnesota State; Amanda Thiele, Ohio State; Ava McNaughton, Wisconsin.
WCHA Rookie of the Week
Kaitlin Groess, G, Bemidji State (Ham Lake, Minn.)
In Bemidji State's first series sweep of the season, Kaitlin Groess stopped 56 of the 60 shots she faced en route to earning her first Rookie of the Week award. Groess posted a 2-0-0 record in between the pipes with a .933 save percentage and 2.00 goals against average. The rookie stopped 17-of-18 shots in the Beavers' 4-1 victory and then turned aside 39-of-42 shots in game two's 4-3 win.
Other Nominees: Hannah Clark, Minnesota; Bella Shipley, Minnesota State.
For more information on the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, follow the league at WCHA.com and on its social platforms: X, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
2024-25 WCHA Players of the Week:
Nov. 18 | Forward: Abbey Murphy, Minnesota; Defender: Riley Brengman, Ohio State; Goaltender: Hannah Clark, Minnesota; Rookie: Kaitlin Groess, Bemidji State
Nov. 11 | Forward: Cara Sajevic, St. Thomas; Defender: Nicole Vallario, St. Thomas
Nov. 4 | Forward: Joy Dunne, Ohio State; Defender: Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin; Goaltender: Dani Strom, St. Thomas; Rookie: Caitlin Kraemer, Minnesota Duluth
Oct. 28: Forward: Joy Dunne, Ohio State; Defender: Emma Peschel, Ohio State; Goaltender: Emilia Kyrkkö, St. Cloud State; Rookie: Josie St. Martin, Ohio State
Oct. 21: Forward: Hailey Armstrong, Bemidji State; Defender: Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin; Goaltender: Ava McNaughton, Wisconsin; Rookie: Emilia Kyrkkö, St. Cloud State
Oct. 14: Forward: Laila Edwards, Jr., Wisconsin; Defender: Laney Potter, Wisconsin; Goaltender: Amanda Thiele, Ohio State; Rookie: Maggie Scannell, Wisconsin
Oct. 7: Forward: Casey O'Brien, Wisconsin; Defender: Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin; Goaltender: Emilia Kyrkkö, St. Cloud State; Rookie: Chloe Boreen, St. Thomas
Sept. 30: Forward: Casey O'Brien, Wisconsin; Defender: Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin; Goaltender: Hailey MacLeod, Ohio State; Rookie: Jordyn Petrie, Ohio State
Sept. 23: Forward: Emma Gentry, St. Cloud State; Defender: Ella Anick, St. Cloud State; Goaltender: Ève Gascon, Minnesota Duluth; Rookie: Caitlin Kraemer, Minnesota Duluth