Northeastern downs Boston College to win 2023 women’s Beanpot championship

The 44th annual women’s Beanpot took place on Feb. 7 and 14, 2023, as Boston’s four major college hockey programs battle for the city’s bragging rights. 

The tournament is part of the fabric of women’s college hockey around Boston as Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern and Harvard square off every February. We’ve seen some incredible runs of success in its history, as well as countless intense, closely-contested games between the four rivals. 

Here’s everything you need to know about the historic women’s college hockey tournament.

2023 women’s Beanpot results

This season’s edition of the tournament pitted Boston University against Northeastern, while Boston College and Harvard squared off in the nightcap of the semifinals.

Below are the results of this season’s women’s Beanpot:

Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023:

Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023:

Previewing this year’s championship

This will mark the seventh time that the Huskies and the Eagles have met in the Beanpot championship over the tournament’s now-44-year history.

Northeastern downed BC, 3-1, in the inaugural title game in 1979. They squared off in four of five championships from 2012-17 with the Eagles winning three of the four. Overall, the Huskies are 4-3-0 in the championship against the Eagles.

Northeastern has the most Beanpots all-time with 17, last winning in 2020 in overtime against BU. They’re 16-11-1 in the championship game and are 14-11-1 against BC in the tournament, overall. 

The Eagles have eight titles with their most recent ring coming in 2018 when they knocked off the Terriers in overtime. They’re 8-11-0 in the championship. 

For the 20th time in program history, we’re headed to the Beanpot title game!#ForBoston🦅 pic.twitter.com/bVZ3BcncDy

— Boston College Women’s Hockey (@BC_WHockey) February 8, 2023

Northeastern is one of, if not the best team on the east coast top-to-bottom right now.

They have won 15 in a row, including a 4-1 result against rival Boston University in the semifinals. The top line of Alina Müller, Chloé Aurard (17g, 27g) and Maureen Murphy (17g, 25a) has been on a tear, combining for three goals and seven points against the Terriers. Gwyneth Philips leads the nation in save percentage, goals-against average, wins and shutouts.

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They knocked off UConn 3-2 in overtime on Friday as Taze Thompson tied it with less than five minutes to go in regulation before Tory Mariano scored the game-winner in the extra frame. Aurard (1g, 1a) and Müller (1a) came through on the scoresheet once again as Philips made 19 saves.

As for the Eagles, they’ve had some ups and downs this season, but are still a formidable squad.

BC has won four straight, including a 3-0 shutout of Harvard in the semis, and are 6-4-0 since Jan. 1. Hannah Bilka leads the way, while Abby Newhook paces the team in the goals department with 16. Abigail Levy has had a stellar season of her own, ranking third in save percentage and 10th in GAA.

They took down the Terriers in the Battle of Comm. Ave with a 2-1 win on Saturday, thanks to goals from Gaby Roy and Alexie Guay as well as 35 saves from Levy.

Recapping the 2023 semifinals

The semifinals was a tale of two different wins as Northeastern’s top line showed out against BU, while the Eagles got goals from three separate blue-liners. Each benefitted from strong goaltending as well. 

Alina Müller (1g, 1a), Chloé Aurard (2a) and Maureen Murphy (2g, 1a) showed out, combining for three goals and seven points in the game.

Murphy got the scoring started less than 10 minutes into the game on a perfectly executed 2-on-1 that saw her slip through the BU defense before roofing a backhander.

The Terriers got on the board early in the second when Brooke Disher put a loose puck top shelf from the slot, but the Huskies answered less than two minutes later when Murphy completed a tic-tac-toe passing play with her linemates, highlighted by a no-look feed from Aurard. 

Müller added insurance about five minutes into the third, picking the top left corner on Brändli, a fellow Swiss national. Brändli (41 saves) did all she could as BU tried to mount a late push, but it was no use as Taze Thompson added an empty-netter with less than a second to go on the clock to seal the Huskies’ 14th straight win.

Huskies advance to the Women’s Beanpot finals!@hockey_east | @GoNUwhockey pic.twitter.com/PQoDNCqfDR

— NESN (@NESN) February 8, 2023

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In the nightcap, the Eagles found timely scoring against a shorthanded Crimson squad, dressing just 16 skaters.

Co-captain Cayla Barnes opened the scoring less than five minutes in, streaking into the slot and redirecting Caroline Goffredo’s pass off the rush.

Keri Clougherty’s first of the season extended it to 2-0 in the second when the blue-liner walked in from the point and blasted home a loose puck. Sidney Fess added another from long range, also her first of the year, to make it 3-0 on the power play with 37.4 seconds to go in the period.

In the third period, Abigail Levy stood tall, stopping all 15 shots Harvard threw at her en route to a 30-save shutout.

Eagles soar back to the Women’s Beanpot championship@BC_WHockey | @hockey_east pic.twitter.com/wOtmqiqiEO

— NESN (@NESN) February 8, 2023

Previewing this year’s tournament

Similar to previous seasons, this year’s Beanpot feels like it could be anyone’s for the taking, even with Northeastern looking like a juggernaut once again. All it takes is a couple bounces in this tournament. 

The first semifinal will see the Huskies battle with the Terriers in a rematch of the 2020 championship.

No. 5 Northeastern (25-2-1, 21-2-1 HEA) is still one of the most dominant teams on the east coast, riding a 13-game winning streak with ranked victories over Princeton, Vermont (thrice) and Cornell. The Huskies took care of New Hampshire in a 4-1 win last time out. Against other Beanpot programs, they’re undefeated, sweeping BC 3-0-0 on the season series and shutting out BU, 6-0, at the start of January. NU ranks fifth in the nation in goals per game (3.93) and first in goals-against (0.86), while boasting the sixth-best power play (22.86) and top penalty kill (92.31). Individually, Alina Müller (17-24–41), Chloé Aurard (16-24–40) and Maureen Murphy (15-24–39) are all among the best in Division I once again, ranking eighth, ninth and tenth in scoring, respectively. In goal, Gwyneth Philips has established herself at the top with a .960 save percentage, a 0.79 goals-against average (GAA) and nine shutouts (all first in the nation).

As for BU (10-15-3, 9-12-3 HEA), they’d like to forget a sluggish first half, but they have picked up the pace of late, taking a six-game unbeaten streak into the Beanpot with a 3-0-3 record in that span (they won the shootout in each of their ties). They’re coming off a 2-2 tie with UConn at home on Friday. Against Beanpot foes, there’s the loss to Northeastern as well as a sweep at the hands of BC in October. They’re yet to face Harvard. The Terriers are putting up 2.1 goals per game, while allowing 2.5, and both special teams units have been nothing more than average. Julia Nearis leads the way with 10 goals and nine assists on the year, and Christina Vote (3-13–16) is behind her. Between the pipes, Andrea Brändli has still managed to put up strong numbers with a .938 save percentage (fourth), 2.03 GAA and two shutouts. 

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In the late game, we’ll see a championship rematch between defending champion Harvard and the runner-up Eagles.

The Crimson (7-14-3, 6-10-3 ECAC) have failed to meet expectations in a stacked ECAC this season. They’re in the middle of a two-game skid as part of a 3-6-1 stretch in 10 games since Jan. 1, which included a wild 7-6 upset of then-No. 10 Cornell. Harvard dropped their most recent game on Friday in a 3-2 loss to Princeton. In one meeting against Boston College this season, they lost 5-1. The Crimson have had trouble on both sides of the puck, averaging 1.8 goals-for and 3.0 against. The power play (6.4 percent) has been of concern, but the penalty kill (83.6) remains solid. In terms of production, Anne Bloomer (13g, 9a) and Kristin Della Rovere (5g, 13a) remain strong, while Alex Pellicci holds a .923 save percentage, 2.88 GAA and three shutouts in net. 

Looking at BC (16-12-1, 14-10-0 HEA), they’re 5-5-0 since the start of 2023, shutting out No. 11 Providence, 3-0, on Friday. The Eagles are 3-2-0 against Beanpot opponents this year, defeating BU and Harvard aside from the sweep to Northeastern. They’re posting 2.5 goals per game and giving up 1.9. The power play (7.4 percent) has struggled as well, but the penalty kill (90.54) ranks in the top-10. Goaltender Abigail Levy has been their rock, ranking 11th in GAA (1.78) and third in save percentage (.946) in addition to four shutouts. In terms of production, co-captain Hannah Bilka (11-23–34) and Abby Newhook (16-23–29) pace BC. 

Recapping the 2022 women’s Beanpot

Harvard won its first Beanpot title since 2015 with a wild 5-4 win over Boston College that saw a five-goal third period between the two teams. Tied at 2-2 after the first 40 minutes, the Crimson quickly took the lead before the Eagles evened it up. Harvard went up 4-3 only for BC to tie it again minutes later. But with just over three minutes to go in regulation, Becca Gilmore scored the game-winning goal for the Crimson’s 15th title.

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Northeastern, last year’s hosts, defeated BU, 3-0, in the consolation game. In the semifinals, Harvard knocked off the Terriers 4-1, while BC upset the Huskies, 3-1. 

Beanpot all-time history

Northeastern leads the tournament with 17 titles, winning the first-ever Beanpot in 1979 and most recently in 2020. They’ve been to the championship game 28 times, compiling a 16-11-1 record. Most of NU’s success has come at the expense of BU, who they are 17-5-4 against in the Beanpot.

The Huskies dominated for most of the tournament’s early years, winning eight in a row from 1984 to 1991. 

Meanwhile, Harvard’s 15 Beanpots sit second all-time after taking home last year’s crown and their first victory coming in 1982. The Crimson have appeared in 30 title games, going 15-15-0. 

Similar to Northeastern, most of their Beanpot success has been via a 19-4-1 record against the Terriers. Also, like the Huskies, Harvard had quite a run of their own from 1999 to 2005, winning seven in a row. 

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Most of BC’s success in the tournament has come in the 2010’s as five of their eight Beanpot titles came in that span, including a three-peat from 2016 to 2018. In 19 championship appearances, they are 8-11-0. The Eagles are also 14-5-1 in the consolation game. 

With the location of the tournament rotating each year between the four schools, this will be the 10th time that BC has hosted the Beanpot. 

Finally, BU has two Beanpot titles to its name, winning in 1981 before ending a 38-year drought in 2019 with their first championship as a varsity program. In eight title games, the Terriers are 2-5-1, while they hold a 17-56-6 marker in the consolation.