ST. CLOUD, Minn. – First-year forward
Helena Siska (Naperville, Ill.) delivered a performance to remember Saturday at Ritsche Arena, recording her first career hat trick to lead the College of Saint Benedict hockey team to a 3-1 nonconference victory over UW-Superior.
Junior goaltender
Savannah Wuitschick (Fargo, N.D.) also played a key role, earning her first collegiate win with the Bennies by stopping 19 of 20 shots.
Siska's three-goal outing marked the sixth hat trick by a CSB player since 2016 and just the second time in program history the Bennies have recorded multiple hat tricks in the same season. The feat last occurred during the 2023–24 campaign by
Aurora Opsahl and
Ava Stinnett. Senior
Presley Kraemer added a hat trick earlier this season on Nov. 30 against Lake Forest. Siska also became the first CSB first-year player in 10 years to record a hat trick.
The win snapped a stretch of three consecutive overtime ties and lifted Saint Benedict to 6-2-3 overall. Siska now leads the team with five goals on the season.
Siska opened the scoring late in the first period, netting an even-strength goal at 19:49 with an assist from senior
Kaya Pelton-Byce (Madison, Wis.). UW-Superior answered midway through the second period when Anna Scherling scored on the power play at 14:19 to tie the game at 1-1.
In the third period, Siska took over. She gave CSB a 2-1 lead just 3:33 into the frame with an unassisted goal before completing the hat trick at 9:50 off an assist from
Presley Kraemer (Brooklyn Park, Minn.).
Both teams finished with 20 shots on goal. CSB went 0-for-4 on the power play, while UW-Superior converted once on eight chances. Wuitschick was especially sharp in the final period, turning aside all nine shots she faced. She now owns a 0.96 goals-against average and a .950 save percentage in 62:34 of action this season.
The Bennies also controlled the faceoff circle, winning 54.2 percent of draws. Siska went 12-for-18, while senior
Mia Lopez (Plymouth, Minn.) added 12 wins on 19 attempts.
Saint Benedict returns to Ritsche Arena for a two-game home series against Dubuque on Friday, Jan. 6 (6 p.m.) and Saturday, Jan. 10 (3 p.m.).