ST. JOSEPH, Minn. — First-year goaltender Lexi Badali (St. John, Ind.) delivered one of the top performances of her young career in a 2–1 overtime loss to No. 3 Amherst in the first round of the NCAA Division III Ice Hockey Championship on March 14, earning The House / St. Cloud Orthopedics CSB Athlete of the Week honor.

 

Badali, who earned the award for the second straight week, kept the Bennies in front for much of the afternoon. She made a career-high 43 saves, stopping 11 shots in the first period, 14 in the second stanza, 16 in the third period and two in overtime.

During the postseason, Badali allowed just five total goals across three games while recording 113 saves. Her playoff performances included 37 saves in a 4–2 win over No. 7 Hamline, 33 in the 2–1 MIAC Championship victory over Gustavus Adolphus and 43 against Amherst. She finished the season with three games of 40 or more saves and 11 games with at least 30.

Badali, who earned Honorable Mention All-MIAC recognition and was named to the MIAC All-Playoff Team, started 22 games and logged 1,329:21 in goal. She allowed 39 goals for a 1.76 goals-against average, which ranked fifth in the MIAC, while posting a .942 save percentage — second in the conference and 18th in Division III. Her save percentage is also the best-ever by a Bennies' goaltender in program history. Twelve of the goals she allowed came on the power play. She finished the season with 631 total saves, ranking second in the MIAC, and averaged 28.68 saves per game, third in the conference. In addition, Badali's 631 saves ranks second in program history (Kristen Blumberg, 639, 1999-00).

Despite the setback to Amherst, the Bennies capped one of the most successful seasons in program history. Badali helped Saint Benedict finish with a program-best 16 victories, capture the MIAC playoff championship and make the program's first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament.