<div><p>Four games against overmatched opponents to start the season ended in comfortable victories for the University of Wisconsin women's hockey team.</p><p>How would the top-ranked Badgers do against a more formidable opponent that recently has done just fine at LaBahn Arena? Their performance Saturday in a 5-1 victory over No. 3 Minnesota Duluth left a positive impression.</p><p>Laney Potter scored twice and Ava McNaughton stopped 33 shots for Wisconsin in its Western Collegiate Hockey Association opener.</p><p>"It's good to get challenged," Badgers coach Mark Johnson said. "It's good to have mistakes happen. Ava, I thought, played really well, had a solid game. They're all tools that can help us grow."</p><p>The Badgers (5-0) outscored Lindenwood and Boston College 34-2 over their first four games, but Duluth (3-2, 2-1 WCHA) was a different kind of test. The Bulldogs swept defending NCAA champion Ohio State to start this season and were 4-2 in their last six games in Madison.</p><h2>People are also reading…</h2><p>Cassie Hall scored 2 minutes, 16 seconds after a Duluth goal to restore the Badgers' two-goal lead in the second period, and McNaughton made it stand up by stopping all 16 shots she faced in the third.</p><h2>What I liked</h2><p>The last four Badgers goals came on the rush, showing that Wisconsin doesn't need to possess the puck in the offensive zone to strike. Kelly Gorbatenko fed Potter from the left side for a 2-0 lead, and Caroline Harvey dished to Hall to make it 3-1.</p><p>Potter followed an Ève Gascon save on Sarah Wozniewicz for her second of the game, and Gorbatenko put the puck underneath the crossbar in the final minute.</p><p>"Realizing when to go and when not to go is a huge thing, especially in a game like this, in league play now," Potter said.</p><p>• Kirsten Simms wasn't deterred after one attempt didn't work out. She passed up what appeared to be a good shot opportunity in the first period in favor of a pass, but it didn't turn out for the Badgers. Another opening less than three minutes later ended differently.</p><p>Gascon had to respect Simms' shooting ability from the right side on a power play, and when Simms sent the puck across the slot, there was an open net for Laila Edwards to fire into.</p><h2>What I didn't like</h2><p>Wisconsin defenders Katie Kotlowski and Ava Murphy had trouble near the defensive blue line on a long pass up ice by Duluth's Hanna Baskin, and it led to a second-period Bulldogs goal.</p><p>Kotlowski had the first try at disrupting the play but couldn't cleanly handle Baskin's pass. Then Murphy got beat on a rush by Danielle Burgen, who threw a pass to the front for Grace Sadura to tip in. That one could have been cleaner for the Badgers.</p><p>• The Badgers relied on McNaughton for a few minutes in the first period as the puck bounced around the top of the crease. That's uncharacteristic for Wisconsin, but credit the Bulldogs for getting the puck down low and working for it.</p><p>"Just trying to be mindful of my rebounds is the biggest thing on those kinds of situations," McNaughton said.</p><h2>Three stars</h2><p><b>No. 3:</b> Laila Edwards, Wisconsin. Scoring the first goal put the Badgers on the right path.</p><p><b>No. 2:</b> Ava McNaughton, Wisconsin. She stayed composed when things came unglued around her.</p><p><b>No. 1:</b> Laney Potter, Wisconsin. The defender's second two-goal game in 46 collegiate outings was big for the Badgers.</p><h2>What it means</h2><p>Sunday's second game of the series will provide knowledge on whether the Badgers can close out a weekend, but points against a team expected to be in the top half of the WCHA always are valuable in the title chase.</p></div>

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No. 1 Wisconsin women's hockey passes season's first major test: Likes, dislikes

Four games against overmatched opponents to start the season ended in comfortable victories for the University of Wisconsin women's hockey team. How would the top-ranked Badgers do against a more formidable opponent that recently has done just fine at LaBahn Arena? Their performance Saturday in a 5-1 victory over No. 3 Minnesota Duluth left a positive impression.