COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The Ohio State Buckeyes women’s hockey team is two wins away from defending its national championship.

On Saturday night, the No. 1 seeded Buckeyes won its first game of the 2023 NCAA tournament with a 5-2 victory over No. 8 Quinnipiac at the OSU Ice Rink. After a slow start in the first period and going down 1-0 at the first break, OSU came out flying with two goals in the second from Gabby Rosenthal on a power play and Lauren Bernard to take the lead.

In the third, the Buckeyes kept up the pressure as Emma Peschel got the third goal and Sophie Jacques added another two to seal the second round win. OSU is now bound for the Frozen Four for the second straight season and will be in Duluth next week to end its season.

Friday at 3:30 p.m., the Buckeyes will play No. 5 Northeastern in the Frozen Four semifinals at AMSOIL Arena. The winner of that game will face either unseeded Wisconsin or No. 2 Minnesota in next Sunday’s national championship game.