DUBUQUE, Iowa – The University of Dubuque men's hockey team started off the 2025-2026 campaign with one of their biggest wins ever, pulling the overtime upset 3-2 on #11 UW-Stevens Point Friday evening. Forty seconds into the overtime period, Wilder Jacober broke away from the Pointers' defense and fired the puck past the goalkeeper to give the Spartans a thrilling victory on Opening Night in the Key City Collegiate Classic.

The Spartans (1-0-0) and Pointers (0-1-0) looked evenly matched early in the contest. Five minutes in, a Pointers penalty and substitution infraction gave the Spartans a 5-on-3 power play. As the first penalty expired, Brock Weimer connected with Nikita Borodayenko and Nolan Underwood to find the net and give the Spartans an early 1-0 lead at 5:37. The Spartans defense held the Pointers to a single shot in a ten-minute span and survived two Pointers power plays late to take a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.

The Pointers were dominant early in the second period, playing much faster and more physically than they did in the first period. The flurry of shots paid off for the Pointers, as they scored at 4:02 to tie the game. The Spartans saw several good looks throughout the second period, culminating in eight shots on goal in a two-minute span, with all eight saved by the opposing goalkeeper. A scuffle at the end of the second period led to a Pointers penalty that was assessed at the beginning of the third period. That power play proved to be fruitful for the Spartans, as just before the power play expired, Jack Paweski fired a shot which deflected directly to Brandon Rossetti, who passed it to a wide-open Borodayenko, giving the Spartans a 2-1 lead at 1:59 in the third period. Dazza Mitchell was marvelous in the third period, saving nine shots and surviving two power plays before the Pointers pulled their goalie with two minutes remaining in the contest. The Pointers capitalized on the empty net power play and knotted the game at two apiece with forty seconds remaining, sending the game to overtime.

The Pointers, threatened early in the overtime period, firing off two shots. After a save from Mitchell, Jacober found the puck and weaved through the Pointers defense, firing a shot past the goalkeeper's shoulder into the upper right corner, closing the game with a sudden-death goal and giving the Spartans their first home win in program history.
Borodayenko tallied a goal and an assist, as well as winning six of his eight faceoffs during the contest. Wiemer led the Spartans with five shots, one of which found the net. Underwood blocked two shots and added an assist to aid the Spartans' upset victory. Mitchell saved 25 shots in his first career collegiate game in goal.

Up Next

The Spartans will take on #6 Aurora University (1-0-0) on Saturday in the Key City Collegiate Classic Championship presented by Island Social. #6 Aurora defeated Augsburg University 4-1 on Friday afternoon to advance to Saturday evening's game. Augsburg and #11 UW-Stevens Point will battle at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday in the consolation game.