It’s only fitting that it was Colorado College sophomore goalie Kaidan Mbereko leading the Tigers on a historic night.

Mbereko made 34 of his career-high 43 saves during the opening two periods before his teammates scored the final five goals to defeat No. 2 North Dakota, 6-2, Saturday night.

It was CC’s first four-game sweep of North Dakota in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference program’s 85 years.

Tigers sophomore forward Gleb Veremyev scored twice in 60 seconds, batting in loose pucks to put CC ahead 5-2 with 9:48 left.

Senior captain Logan Will had scored the eventual game-winner six minutes earlier at a raucous Ed Robson Arena. CC sophomore Noah Laba added an empty-netter with 6:33 left for the final margin.

They had that opportunity thanks to their goalie.

“Mbereko was special tonight,” Tigers coach Kris Mayotte said. “We are probably talking 10 saves that you shake your head at. It wasn’t just that he was under siege, it was big-time chances, cross-crease stuff. He was the Player of the Game tonight.”

Saturday’s NCHC win kept the Tigers (18-9-1, 33 standings points) in third place with six regular-season games remaining and up to 11th in the Pairwise rankings, which determine the 16-team NCAA Tournament field in March. CC last made the tourney in 2011.

Both teams struggled to contain their emotions and there were undisciplined penalties aplenty as the Hawks tried to soothe their anger after Friday’s 7-1 drubbing to open the series.

The Tigers refused to back down but a 5-minute boarding call on Laba put CC in a bind.

Fortunately for the hosts, Mbereko showed why he is contending for the Mike Richter Award as the best men’s Division-I goaltender in the nation.

“A lot of what we had to endure early was a lot of (penalty kill) time,” Mayotte said. “We had a lot of guys step up in that scenario but there is no doubt Berky (Mbereko) got us that (win) tonight.

The Aspen native kept it at 2-1, setting the stage for the tying goal with 2:59 remaining in the second when CC freshman Evan Werner ended his 20-game scoreless streak.

Entering the third period, league-leading UND (20-8-2, 37 points) had more power-play shots (19) than CC’s 17 total shots on goal. But the resilient Tigers were poised to seize control.

“Werner’s goal was huge and that had us going into the locker room feeling we were just one goal away,” Mayotte said. “It allowed us to reset.”

That resilience emerged during the December sweep at North Dakota that led to history made Saturday.

“We knew they would have a push and it was just managing that for us,” said Laba, who recorded a goal and two assists. “We emphasize execution over emotion. We have been in enough of those tight games that we are calm and collected. We know what we are about.”

Colorado College forward Evan Werner (19) is shoved into the boards by North Dakota defenseman Jake Livanavage (4) in the third period of a hockey game on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Ed Robson Arena in Colorado Springs, Colo. (Parker Seibold, The Gazette)

Parker Seibold