As unlikely as it seems, the University of Denver hockey team remains in first place in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

With only 14.4 seconds left in the third period and DU's goalie pulled for an extra attacker, freshman Joe Colborne scored the tying goal to force overtime against No. 13 Wisconsin.

Then, just 41 seconds into the extra period, junior Brian Gifford scored off a backhander to lift the eighth-ranked Pioneers to a 4-3 victory against the Badgers in front of a stunned Kohl Center crowd of 13,940 Friday night.

"This was maybe the biggest game of the year for us so far," Colborne said. "Huge win for us. We know if we come out and play like that (Saturday night), we won't get another two points. We'll take this and enjoy the moment, but we know we have to play a lot better."

Heading into the game, the Pioneers were 11-2-2 in the building.

But after getting outshot 35-21 and being outplayed on several fronts, somehow the Pioneers (19-9-4 overall, 14-7-3 WCHA) made the plays at the crucial times.

"Obviously, we were pleased with the win, but darn it, we're capable of playing so much better," DU coach George Gwozdecky said. "Obviously, Wisconsin is a heck of a team and played a heck of a game."

The Badgers outshot the Pioneers 15-3 and controlled every facet of the game in the first. A 2-0 lead midway through the opening period could have been much worse for Denver.

Denver was able to make the most of its rare opportunities in the first period, however, as Kyle Ostrow deflected a J.P. Testwuide slap shot past Wisconsin goalie Shane Connelly.

Then, just 21 seconds into the second period, Tyler Ruegsegger tied the score, at least temporarily changing the dynamic of the game. But early in the third period, the Badgers scored again.

Then it looked like Wisconsin was going to run out the clock and take over the WCHA lead .

That is, until Colborne decided to create magic for the second straight game. In the Pioneers' previous game, against Colorado College, he scored with less than a minute to play to force overtime, and the teams went on to finish in a tie.

This time, Colborne waited until 14.4 seconds remained, when his shot dribbled over the shoulder of Connelly and fell across the goal line.

"That was about the longest second of my life," Colborne said. "We knew we had to get some shots on net and something good would happen. Just got lucky to have it trickle over his shoulder."

Then, early in the overtime, Ruegsegger batted down the puck in the DU offensive zone just as it looked like Wisconsin was on its way toward a zone breakout. Ruegsegger got the puck over to Gifford, who cut across the middle and backhanded the puck to the far side of the net, catching Connelly moving too far to the right.

It was just Gifford's third goal of the season.

Denver 4, Wisconsin 3, OT

Denver1 1 1 1 - 4

Wisconsin2 0 1 0 - 3

First period - 1, Wis, Geoffrion (12) (Davies, Stepan), 3:17 (pp); 2, DU, Johnson (3) (Dolan, Goloubef), 9:34; 3, DU, Ostrow (10) (Testwuide, Martin), 13:33 (pp). Penalties - DU, Maiani (2-hooking), 2:38; DU, Testwuide (interference), 3:48; Wis, Mitchell (2-hooking), 6:00; DU, Ruegsegger (2-tripping), 7:19; Wis, Dolan (2-interference), 12:31.

Second period - 4, Ruegsegger (12) (Gifford, Rakhshani), 0:21. Penalties - DU, Testwuide (2-interference), 3:02; Wis, McDonagh (2-cross-checking), 8:44; DU, Jackson (2-unsportsmanlike conduct), 17:38; Wis, Smith (2-unsportsmanlike conduct), 17:38.

Third period - 5, Wis, Davies (7) (Stepan, McDonagh), 2:12; 6, DU, Colborne (9) (Ostrow, Martin), 19:45. Penalties - DU, Rakhshani (2-roughing), 0:58; Wis, Gorowsky (2-roughing), 0:58.

Overtime - 7, DU, Gifford (3) (Ruegsegger, Wiercioch), 0:41.

Shots-on-goal - DU 3-8-8-2 - 21; Wis 15-11-9-0 - 35. Power-play opportunities - DU 1 of 3; Wis 1 of 4.

COLORADO COLLEGE 4, MINNESOTA 3 at Colorado Springs - Mike Testwuide's goal with 3:04 remaining gave the Tigers the win against the Gophers.

AIR FORCE 4, HOLY CROSS 3 at Air Force Academy - Jacques Lamoureux's goal proved to the winner, as the Falcons beat the Crusaders.

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