Game Summary vs. Bethel / GameDay Online

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — It would seem a save bet that, following a season that included 13 losses, Saint Mary's University men's soccer coach Chris Dembiec would be relieved to see the 2008 season come to a close.

Not quite.

In fact, the Cardinals' head coach was sad to see the season end.

A season-ending two-game winning streak will do that to a coach.

The Cardinals, coming off a thrilling 1-0 victory MIAC tournament-bound St. Thomas last Saturday, picked up its second straight conference win Saturday, knocking off Bethel 2-1 in overtime.

“What a great way for these guys to close out the season,” said Dembiec, whose team managed just two wins and a tie in its first 18 games — including no wins in their first nine conference games — before closing out with those back-to-back victories. “This team has overcome a lot of adversity. There have been plenty of times this season in which they could have just thrown in the towel, but they never did — they just kept battling and battling, and, finally, they were rewarded for their efforts.”

Bethel got on the board first, scoring just four minutes into the opening half and took that lead into halftime. In fact, the Cardinals waited until the 74th minute to knot the game as Andy Adair (Woodbury, Minn.) beat Bethel goalie Nick Kantor to knot the game at 1-1.

Six minutes into the overtime period, Adair was at it again, netting his second of the game to give the Cardinals their first two-game winning streak of the season.

“It's a great way for us to end the season,” said Dembiec, whose team closed out its season with a 2-7-1 mark in the MIAC and a 4-13-1 overall record. “To go into the off-season with back-to-back wins is huge — hopefully we can use this as a springboard into next season.”