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WINONA, Minn. — Saint Mary's University men's hockey coach Bill More and his Cardinals experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows Saturday evening in their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rematch against Hamline at the SMU Ice Arena.

The Cardinals were on top of the world after racing out to a 2-0 first-period lead against the defending conference champions. Unfortunately, it was the Pipers who would score four of the game's final five goals — including the game-winner 43 seconds into overtime, as Hamline handed SMU a heartbreaking 4-3 setback.

Unlike Friday's conference opener against the Pipers — in which the Cardinals found themselves trailing 1-0 less than 30 seconds into the first period — SMU took the upper hand early, scoring twice in the game's opening 20 minutes.

Kevin Wentland (Columbia Heights, Minn.) got the Cardinals on the board at 13:21, beating Hamline goalie Beau Christian glove side with a wrist shot. A.J. Mueller (New Berlin, Wis.) made it 2-0 a minute later, scoring his first goal of the season on the power play.

As dominant as the Cardinals were in the first period, the Pipers were equally as dominant in the second, scoring three times — sandwiching a Joe Rubbelke goal around a pair of power-play tallies — to give Hamline a 3-2 advantage heading into the third stanza.

Austin Balko (Midland, Mich.) got the Cardinals even with his second goal of the season 1:41 into the final period and Andy Scheib (Sun Prairie, Wis.) and Co. would keep it that way, as the junior goalie kicked out nine third-period shots in helping force overtime.

In the extra session, however, it was the Pipers who would hit pay dirt, as Ryan McElhone banged a Nick Widing rebound past Scheib for the game-winner.

Scheib finished with 34 saves for the Cardinals — including 15 in the second period — while Christian tallied 26 saves in goal for Hamline.

SMU (0-2-0 MIAC, 0-6-0 overall) is now off until Nov. 22, when the Cardinals host Milwaukee School of Engineering in the first of two nonconference games at the SMU Ice Arena.