WINONA, Minn. — There are big wins, and there are big wins.

And then there was last Friday night.

UW-Superior entered last Friday's nonconference men's hockey game against Saint Mary's with a gaudy 6-1-0 record — including a four-game winning streak in which the Yellow Jackets had outscored their opponents 32-6.

SMU, meanwhile, limped into the contest with a nothing-flashy 1-2-1 overall mark, including its most recent setback, a 4-2 decision to UW-River Falls.

When the dust finally settled, however, it wasn't the Cardinals who limped out of the SMU Ice Arena — it was UW-Superior.

Chad Damerow (Albert Lea, Minn.) broke in alone and beat Yellow Jacket goalie Mathieu Bonnelly with less than a minute remaining in overtime as the Cardinals knocked off UW-Superior 3-2.

"That was a great college hockey game," understated SMU coach Don Olson, whose team had not beaten UW-Superior since opening the 1985-86 season with an 8-4 win. "I'm at a loss for words. To put forth that type of effort — to never get down, to never give up — it's just a testament to the type of team we have.

"That win was so big for us," continued Olson, whose team picked up right where they left off the following night, beating St. Scholastica 4-2. "We needed a win against a top 10 team like that to show these guys just how good they can be."

Good? If last Friday's performance is any indication, they have the potential to be great.

After a scoreless first period, SMU jumped out to a 1-0 lead on Nick Meeker's (Rochester, Minn.) shorthanded goal five minutes into the second period. UW-Superior responded with a powerplay goal five minutes later, and the two teams headed into the third period tied 1-1.

SMU regained the lead, 2-1, on Mike Bry's (Manvel, N.D.) second of the season at the 2:58 mark of the third period, but again Superior bounced back, as Beau Moyer sent the game into overtime.

UW-Superior appeared to have a golden opportunity to pull out the win late in the five-minute extra session, as SMU's Graham Murphy (Wester Groves, Mo.) was whistled for slashing with less than two minutes remaining.

Instead, it was Damerow to the rescue as he intercepted a Yellow Jacket pass in the neutral zone and broke in alone on Bonnelly, beating the UW-Superior goal to the glove side for the game-winner.

"Overall it was a great weekend for us," said Olson, who watched Jason Fillipp (Fox River Grove, Ill.) score a pair of goals and assist on another in leading SMU to its 4-2 win over the Saints on Saturday.. "We sustained a very high level for two straight nights, which was great to see.

"Hopefully they proved something to themselves this weekend."

They certainly proved something to UW-Superior and St. Scholastica.