ST. JOSEPH, Minn. — On one of the best stretches in program history, the (RV) College of Saint Benedict hockey team enters the final month of the regular season with momentum — and a challenging schedule ahead.

Winners of six of its last seven games, Saint Benedict (11-3-3, 6-2-2 MIAC) begins a challenging closing slate this weekend with a home-and-home series against No. 5 Hamline (14-3-0, 8-2-0 MIAC). The Bennies will host the Pipers at 6 p.m., Friday, Jan. 30, before traveling to St. Paul for a 2:30 p.m., rematch Saturday at TRIA Rink.

Saint Benedict received votes in the USCHO National Poll for the second straight week, while Hamline was ranked fifth. The Bennies sit second in the MIAC standings with 22 points and will face three nationally ranked or vote-receiving teams over the next two weeks. Following Hamline, CSB meets (RV) Gustavus Adolphus (8-7-2, 5-3-2 MIAC) in a home-and-home series Feb. 6–7, then faces No. 4 Augsburg Feb. 13–14 before closing the regular season against Concordia on Feb. 20–21.

The national recognition marks a milestone for the program. Saint Benedict received votes in the USCHO poll for the second consecutive week on Monday, Jan. 19 — the first time in program history the Bennies have earned votes in back-to-back polls.

Season Review

Saint Benedict most recently split a conference series with Saint Mary's. The Bennies earned a 5-4 victory Friday behind two goals and an assist from first-year Helena Siska (Naperville, Ill.), while Emily Wendorf (Minnetrista, Minn.) posted a career-high four assists. The win extended CSB's streak to six straight before a 1-0 overtime loss Saturday snapped the run.Prior to that, the Bennies swept St. Catherine in a home-and-home series, winning 4-1 and 2-1. Over a five-game span, Saint Benedict outscored opponents 26-3. In the Jan. 17 victory, Camryn Hargreaves (Minnetrista, Minn.) scored, and Shae Stinnett delivered the game-winning goal with 1:46 remaining in regulation. First-year goaltender Lexi Badali (St. John, Ind.) earned both wins, stopping 40 shots and allowing just two goals across the series.

The St. Catherine sweep followed a dominant home-and-home against Dubuque, where the Bennies posted back-to-back shutouts and outscored the Spartans, 17-0. In the opener, senior Presley Kraemer (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) recorded her second career hat trick in a 10-0 win. Hargreaves added two goals, and first-year Lexi Hueller (Maple Grove, Minn.) scored her first collegiate goal. Junior Savannah Wuitschick (Fargo, N.D.) earned her first career shutout with 13 saves.

The 10-goal outburst marked Saint Benedict's highest-scoring game since 2005 and the 13th double-digit scoring performance in program history.

On Senior Day, CSB completed the sweep with a 7-0 victory as seven different players found the net. Senior goaltender Ellynor Haack (St. Paul, Minn.) recorded 10 saves for her second career shutout, while first-year Tana Carlson (Anchorage, Alaska) netted her first collegiate goal. Kraemer capped the weekend with her fourth goal in two games.

Earlier in January, Saint Benedict opened the new year strong against UW-Superior. On Jan. 3, Siska recorded her first collegiate hat trick in a 3-1 nonconference win at Ritsche Arena, becoming the first CSB first-year player in a decade to score three goals in a game. Wuitschick made 19 saves for her first collegiate victory. The night before, the teams skated to a 2-2 overtime tie before the Bennies earned a 2-0 shootout win.

Saint Benedict closed 2024 with a pair of 1-1 overtime ties against Bethel. Each team claimed a shootout win, while Badali allowed just two goals over 130 minutes. Badali earned MIAC Player of the Week honors after making a career-high 41 saves Dec. 5 at Ritsche Arena.

Defensive consistency has defined the Bennies all season. In late November, CSB swept a nonconference series at Lake Forest. Merrill Delich (Andover, Minn.), Jorja Jusczak (Moose Lake, Minn.) and Regan Flohrs (St. Paul, Minn.) scored in a 3-2 opener, giving goaltender Sam Knutson (Chicago, Ill.) her first career win. The following night, Kraemer notched her first career hat trick in a 6-1 victory and earned MIAC Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Earlier in the season, Saint Benedict split with St. Olaf and swept St. Scholastica, highlighted by a four-point weekend from senior Mia Lopez (Plymouth, Minn.) and two wins in net from Badali.

By the Numbers

Under head coach Lindsay Macy — the program's all-time wins leader with 48 career victories — Saint Benedict is averaging 3.18 goals per game (third in the MIAC, 16th in Division III) while allowing just 1.82 (third in the MIAC, 26th nationally). The Bennies hold a 31.2-to-22.9 edge in shots per game, have nine power-play goals, and lead the MIAC and Division III with four short-handed goals by four different players.

Kraemer leads the team with nine goals, tied for third in the MIAC, and has recorded points in seven of the past eight games. Siska ranks tied for fifth in the league with 18 points and is averaging 1.06 points per game. Shehas eight goals and 10 assists.  Hargreaves and Delich each have 10 points, while junior Ella Tuccitto (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) has nine. In goal, Badali ranks fourth in the MIAC with a 1.61 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage.

Scouting Hamline

Hamline, ranked No. 5 in the USCHO poll, enters the weekend atop the MIAC standings. Under first-year head coach Jake Bobrowski, the Pipers are averaging a league-best 4.35 goals per game while allowing just 1.35. Ashlyn Abrahamson and Grace Delmonico each have nine goals to tie for second in the MIAC, while Nina Hortson has eight. Goaltender Harper Powell owns a league-best 1.05 goals-against average and .952 save percentage, having allowed just eight goals in 14 games.

Series Snapshot

Hamline leads the all-time series 25-23-4, though Saint Benedict earned a 3-2 win in the most recent meeting on Feb. 1, 2025. The Bennies are 13-9-4 at home against the Pipers and 10-16-0 in St. Paul. Over the last 10 meetings, CSB is 4-6 against Hamline. In the first ever meeting, CSB recorded a 17-1 victory on Dec. 10, 1999 when Kelly Wegwerth scored three goals and two assists, Kate Rollwagen had two goals and an assist  and Paula Vogt had four assists.