WINONA, Minn. — It's been a long time coming—a very long time.
 
For the first time since Dec. 11, 2004—a span of 22 games—the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's hockey team left the ice with a regulation victory over St. Thomas.
 
The Cardinals got a pair of goals from Martin Gruse (Trenton, Mich.), the game-winner off the stick of Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Wis.) with less than three minutes remaining in regulation, and a 45-save effort from Jake Hebda (Firestone, Colo.) in handing the league-leading Tommies a 4-3 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback Friday evening at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena.
 
"I'm proud of the guys," said Saint Mary's coach Bill Moore, whose team snapped an 0-19-3 winless streak against the Tommies—dating back to a 4-2 win on Dec. 11, 2004. "We were playing a bit shorthanded and everyone stepped up and really put together a great effort."
 
The Cardinals would score the only goal of the first period, as Jared Johnson (Hartland, Wis.) netted his sixth of the season on assists from Michael Amelio (Venetia, Pa.) and Nick Albergo (Elmhurst, Ill.) 6:27 into the opening stanza.
 
St. Thomas would net the equalizer six minutes into the second period on a goal by Ben Vikich, but Gruse would answer—twice.
 
Gruse netted his eight of the season just 49 seconds after Vikich's goal and added his second of the goal on a picture-perfect back-door pass from Jay Heinle (York, Pa.) at 11:42 to give Saint Mary's a two-goal cushion heading into the game's final 20 minutes.
 
The first 17 minutes of that final period, however, belonged to the Tommies.
 
St. Thomas cut the Saint Mary's lead to 3-2 just 1:16 into the third period, and then got the equalizer 11 minutes later on a goal by Cullen Willox.
 
The game would remain deadlocked until the 17:21 mark, when Albergo's shot from out front slipped through the pads of UST goalie Joe Morris and found the back of the net to give the Cardinals the lead for good.
 
Hebda was at his best when the Cardinals needed him most, stopping 20 third-period shots en route to his career-best 45-save effort. Morris finished with 16 saves—but managed to stop just one of Saint Mary's two shots in the game's final period.
 
The Cardinals (4-2-1 MIAC, 7-5-2 overall) will go for the sweep against the Tommies on Saturday, as the two teams head to the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minn., for the 7 p.m. conference rematch.