Minnesota tips Cornell, gets spot in Frozen Four

MINNEAPOLIS – The University of Minnesota men’s hockey team advanced to the 2005 NCAA Frozen Four with a 2-1 overtime win over Cornell in the championship game of the 2005 NCAA West Regional Sunday at Mariucci Arena. Senior forward Barry Tallackson scored the game-winning goal at 4:31 of the extra session to push the top-seeded Golden Gophers (28-14-1) to their third NCAA Frozen Four in four years.

The 2005 NCAA Frozen Four is April 7 and 9, in Columbus, Ohio. The Golden Gophers won back-to-back NCAA Championships in 2002 and 2003.

After a scoreless first period that saw the Golden Gophers outshoot the Big Red (27-5-3), 14-3, Cornell took the game’s first lead at 13:02 of the second period. With Minnesota on a power-play, Cornell pounced on loose puck in its own zone and raced up the ice on a 3- on-1 rush. Daniel Pegoraro passed across the slot for Mitch Carefoot to knock past UM goaltender Kellen Briggs on the glove side.

Less than two minutes later, Minnesota knotted the game at one with Andy Sertich’s sixth goal of the season. Using a nice give-and-go play, Sertich fed Garrett Smaagaard who passed back to Sertich to tuck a backhander between Cornell goaltender David McKee’s legs for the game-tying goal.

Denver 4, UNH 2

AMHERST, Mass. – For the second straight postseason, Denver’s Gabe Gauthier has been the best player on the ice when the Pioneers needed him the most.

Gauthier, whose game-winner lifted Denver past Maine in the 2004 national championship game, had a hat trick Sunday to lead the Pioneers to a 4-2 win over New Hampshire in the NCAA Northeast Regional final and their second straight Frozen Four.

Ryan Dingle scored the game-winning goal at 16:17 of the third period and Gauthier added an empty-net goal late for Denver. He had six points in the Pioneers’ two tourney wins and was named most outstanding player of the regional.

On the decisive goal, Wildcats freshman goaltender Kevin Regan stopped two shots, but he didn’t smother the puck, and Dingle took advantage by poking it in.

North Dakota 6, Boston College 3

WORCESTER, Mass. – Travis Zajac and Chris Porter each scored a pair of goals Saturday night in the East Regional final, sending North Dakota to a 6-3 win over top-seeded Boston College and its 15th trip to the Frozen Four.

The Fighting Sioux (24-14-5), seeking their eighth NCAA title, will face the winner of the West Regional champion Minnesota on April 7 in Columbus, Ohio. North Dakota’s last NCAA championship came in 2000.

Jordan Parise, who posted his second career NCAA tourney shutout with 29 stops in a 4-0 win over Boston University on Friday, made 33 saves and was named the regional MVP.

Colorado College 4, Michigan 3

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Colorado College rallied for a 3-0 deficit to beat Michigan 4-3 in the Midwest Regional final Saturday.

The Frozen Four, hockey’s version of college basketball’s Final Four, is set for April 7 and 9 in Columbus, Ohio. CC will play in a national semifinal against Denver.

CC beat the nation’s hottest team – the Wolverines had won 11 straight games entering the Midwest Regional final. The comeback was the largest deficit overcome in the history of the NCAA regional tournament, and came one day after CC was nearly upset by underdog Colgate in the first round.

“This is probably the best feeling I ever had in my life, to come back the way that we did,” junior center Trevor Frischmon said in a locker room that rocked with music and good vibes Saturday night.

“Just to do it as a team, the way we did, is just unbelievable.”

Frischmon scored two goals, including the game-winner with just under 10 minutes left that hushed the pro-Michigan crowd of 6,571 at Van Andel Arena, just a two-hour drive from the Wolverines’ Ann Arbor campus.

The last time the Tigers (31-8-3) beat Michigan (31-8-3) in the NCAA Tournament was 1957.