STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The UW-Stevens Point women's hockey team (8-6-0) fell in the 2026 opener, 3-1, to visiting Saint Mary's (4-5-0) in the first of a home-and-home weekend series on Friday afternoon.
 
The Cardinals opened the scoring at 7:35 of the first period with a shorthanded goal just seconds before the UWSP power play ended.
 
Freshman Dani Weiland (St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville) scored the first Pointers' goal of 2026 at 12:54 of the first period to even up the contest at 1-1. Fellow freshmen Kaiya Johnson (Hanover, Minn./Buffalo) and Kendall Rykkeli (Anoka, Minn./Anoka) had assists on the equalizer.
 
SMU regained the lead at 5:17 of the second period with the eventual game-winner. The Cardinals added another goal in the second period at the 11:50 mark to complete the scoring.
 
UWSP goaltender Emily Griege (Chesterfield, Mo./Westminster Christian Academy) made 46 saves in a effort to keep the Pointers close. SMU goaltender Celeste Rimstad needed just eight saves to pick up the win.

The Pointers travel to Minnesota on Saturday (Jan. 3) to finish the series with Saint Mary's. Puck drop is set for 3:00 p.m. in Winona.