SUPERIOR, Wis. – The University of Dubuque men's hockey team upset #13 UW-Superior 4-1 on Friday evening in the first round of the UW-Superior Showdown.
Nikita Borodaenko tallied four points in the contest, the most in a single game in program history.
The Spartans took a few shots early in the first period but neither team found the net for the first fourteen minutes.
Zach Burfoot broke the scoreless tie with passes from Borodaenko and
Zach Cline in the fifteenth minute and the Spartans never looked back.
Dazza Mitchell held the Yellowjackets scoreless and the Spartans led 1-0 going into the first intermission. The Yellowjackets committed a penalty early in the second and
Max Erstad capitalized, scoring fifteen seconds into the power play off passes from Borodaenko and Jack Paewski and extending the lead. The Spartans were unable to score on another power play but Mitchell stopped 13 shots in the period, as the Spartans led 2-0 after two periods. Both teams looked evenly matched early in the third period. Six minutes in, Borodaenko collected his third assist of the evening as Cline scored and gave the Spartans a decisive three-goal lead. The Yellowjackets scored seven minutes later and cut the deficit to two. Borodayenko immediately scored again off a pass from Burfoot, giving him four points, the most in a single game in program history. Mitchell stayed strong in goal and the Spartans won 4-1.
Borodaenko finished with a goal and three assists in the contest. He also won five face-offs and took three shots. Borodaenko and Burfoot both finished with a plus/minus of three on Friday, leading the Spartans. Burfoot and
Wilder Jacober led the Spartans with four shots each while
Aleksey Zielinski led the Spartans with five blocked shots.
Nolan Underwood won seven of his 11 face-offs and blocked three Yellowjacket shots. In goal,
Dazza Mitchell made 30 saves while surrendering just one goal across sixty minutes.
Up Next
The Spartans will take on fellow NCHA foe Lawrence University in the championship game on Saturday evening. Lawrence defeated Saint Scholastica 5-0 on Friday afternoon to advance to the championship game.
