UW-Stout 4, St. Norbert 3
GREEN BAY (February 7, 2009) - Joel Gaulrapp (Jr, Owatonna, Minn) sent the game into overtime and Scott Motz (Jr, Lake Elmo, Minn) scored the game winner two minutes later as UW-Stout defeated St. Norbert College, 4-3, Saturday at Cornerstone Community Center.
The Blue Devils (17-5-2, 9-2-2) played come from behind all night. The Green Knights (16-7-1, 7-5-1) took a 2-0 lead after the first period, but Stout cut the lead in half when Andy Sternberg (Jr, Duluth, Minn) scored six minutes into the second period.
St. Norbert's Steve Sleep put the Green Knights up 3-1 two minutes into the third period.
Sternberg cut the lead back to one goal when he got a shorthanded goal at the 6:15 mark of the third for his second goal of the night.
Gaulrapp tied the game with only 30 seconds left with extra attacker on the ice, scoring on the glove side of St. Norbert goalie Blake Bashor.
Stout attacked in the extra period. Paul Henderson (Jr, Menomonie), who had two goals the night before, put a shot off the pipe, but Motz got the game winner on a breakout moments later, beating Bashor again on his glove side.
Stout held a slight 34-32 lead in shots. The Blue Devils' Matt Koenig (Sr, Lakeland, Minn) had 29 saves, while Bashor had 30.
The win gives Stout their first ever sweep over St. Norbert in a season, and their first win at Cornerstone Community Center, the Knights' home ice. Stout defeated St. Norbert in Green Bay two years ago, but that game was at the Resch Center.
The win assured Stout of a top-three finish in the NCHA. UW-Superior wrapped up the top seed for the NCHA Peters Cup tournament with a 6-1 win over UW-Stevens Point tonight. Superior holds the tie-breaker over Stout. With one league game remaining, Stout could still tie the Yellowjackets for first place in the NCHA with a win over UW-River Falls Friday, Feb. 13, and a Superior loss to St. Scholastica. Stout trails Superior by two points.
