Something happened at Wessman Arena on Friday night that hasn't happened in a long time.  Actually two things.  First, the 'Jackets won the NCHA championship outright, something that hasn't happened since the 2000-01 season.  Second, they played in front of a capacity crowd.  Every seat in the house was taken, and it was standing room only on both ends of the rink.  We hadn't seen that since the NCAA title season of 2001-02.

The sellout crowd saw two NCAA Division III heavyweights trade punches through sixty minutes, and in the end it was the home team coming away victorious, as the 'Jackets edged St. Scholastica 4-3 at Wessman Arena.

The win locked up the third NCHA championship in school history, and also avenged one of Superior's two losses on the season.  With the loss, the Saints were relegated to third place in the NCHA standings and will host a first round playoff series at Mars-Lakeview Arena next weekend.

The Saints opened the scoring, just like they did in the first meeting, early in the first period.  Jordan Chong finished off a 2-on-1 rush and beat Chad Beiswenger (Sr. Moorhead, Minnesota) on the stick side to make it 1-0 at 5:28.  The 'Jackets would come back to tie it on a power play goal a few minutes later.  Brian Bina (Jr. Grand Forks, North Dakota) held the zone at the left point and fed Chris Wilson (Jr. Prince Albert, Saskatchewan) who was left uncovered in front of the goal.  Going from left to right, Wilson out-waited Saints' goaltender Steve Bounds and beat him up high to tie the game 1-1.  Wilson's 14th goal of the year came at 9:19.

In the second the Saints took the lead for the second time.  Trevor Geiger finished serving a penalty and came out of the box into the offensive zone.  Joey Hughes took a bad angle shot from the left that Beiswenger stopped, but he kicked the rebound to the right circle where Geiger picked it up and buried it to make it 2-1 at 2:42.  It stayed that way for most of the period before the 'Jackets tied the game on the power play once again.  With a two-man advantage, Logan Isley (So. Bonnyville, Alberta) was off to the left of the goal when he fed a pass across the goal mouth.  It was tipped and the bouncing puck came to Wilson in the right circle.  He lifted the puck over Bounds into the top corner for his second of the game at 19:12 of the period to again tie the game.  Talon Berlando (So. Drumheller, Alberta) also had an assist on the play.

The 'Jackets took their first lead of the game early in the third.  Eric Bausano (Sr. Laurium, Michigan) carried into the offensive zone on the left wing and drove the net, letting a shot go that Bounds stopped.  The rebound was loose in the crease and Andrew MacKenzie (Sr. Terrace Bay, Ontario) tapped it home for his fourth goal of the season at 2:50.  But the joy was short-lived as the Saints tied it up a minute later.  Rob Rodgers held the zone at the right point and fired toward the net.  Yellowjacket nemesis A.J. Tucker was in front and made a nifty redirection between his legs and past Beiswenger to make it 3-3 at 3:50 of the final period.  The 'Jackets took the lead for good at 10:55.  Kevin Huck (Sr. Eden Prairie, Minnesota) entered the Saints' zone on the left and centered to Jeff Herman (Sr. Cranbrook, British Columbia).  Herman converted the odd-man rush, firing a shot that beat Bounds high on the stick side to make it 4-3.  Tyler Fletcher (Jr. Calgary, Alberta) also had an assist.  From there the teams traded a few chances, but the Saints, pressing to try for the tie, carried the play.  Following a timeout late in the period, the Saints buzzed the Yellowjacket goal, applying unrelenting pressure and forcing Beiswenger to make several difficult saves.  With under ten seconds to play, Isley picked up the puck on the right side and cleared to center, ending the St. Scholastica threat and sealing the victory for the Yellowjackets.

Both goaltenders were outstanding in the seesaw battle.  Bounds finished with 31 saves and Beiswenger had 30.

The 'Jackets took just two penalties for four minutes, while the Saints took six for 12 minutes.  The Yellowjackets went 2-6 on the power play while the Saints were 0-2.

The playoffs now beckon, and as long as they keep playing, the 'Jackets (20-2-3, 11-1-2 NCHA) will be playing at home.  They open their quest for their seventh Peters Cup next weekend with a two-game set with Lake Forest.  The first game will be Friday, February 20 at 7:05 p.m., and can be heard live locally on KUWS 91.3 FM, beginning with the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m.  If you are outside the local listening area, you can tune in via the Internet at www.kuws.fm.  Jon Garver will have the call.