Niedermaier's OT winner lifts Spartans to weekend sweep of Selkirk

Trinity Western University's Florian Niedermaier scored the game-winning goal in overtime as the Spartans knocked off Selkirk College by a 3-2 score on Saturday night to earn all four points from their road weekend series with the Saints.

First-year TWU forward Brayden Brown tied the game with 4:59 left in the third period to force the game to go beyond 60 minutes. The Spartans outshot the Saints 5-0 in the extra session, with Niedermaier sealing the win with 1:37 left in overtime.

The Spartans (14-3-0-0) have now won nine straight games, while Selkirk (11-3-0-2) has dropped three straight. Dustin Deugau also scored for TWU, while Dallas Calvin and Grant Iles tallied for the home side.

"Tonight we did a lot of really good things," says TWU head coach Barret Kropf. "We were really responsible in our own zone and we kept chipping away. Their goalie played well and it took until the last few minutes to tie it up on a really gritty goal by our top line. But it wasn't just our top line that was rolling. Our speed continued to give us opportunities to win the game tonight."

TWU goalie Silas Matthys was once again a tower of strength in the crease, making 33 saves. Selkirk's Brett Huber stopped 30 of the 33 shots he faced.

Deugau opened the scoring with 2:46 left in the first period, capitalizing on a power play for his second goal of the season. Brandon Potomak and Kaleb Denham added the assists. The Saints responded in the middle stanza, scoring both of their goals in a span of 2:45 to put the home team up 2-1 after two periods.

With TWU looking for the tying marker, Niedermaier finally found it, with Jarrett Fontaine and Evan Last picking up helpers.

"It's a really tough barn to win hockey games in at any time of year, but especially in the second half," says Kropf. "To come in here and grab these four points, our guys played two great games. I'm really proud of our guys in the way that they played with a lot of courage tonight."

The Spartans haven't lost since a 5-2 setback against the Saints way back on Nov. 10 in Castlegar. With his overtime winner, Niedermaier is now tied with TWU alum Josh MacKnee for the TWU career lead in goals, at 30.

The Spartans were one for four on the power play. After Selkirk scored all three of its goals with the man-advantage Friday, the Saints were held off the scoresheet on each of their three power play opportunities Saturday.

The Spartans return home this weekend to host Simon Fraser University on Thursday at 7:00 PM and the University of Victoria on Saturday at 1:00 PM.