That winning feeling for Orono, ranked No. 5 in the Class 1A coaches’ poll released Jan. 31, sparked a group celebration on the ice before a joyous visiting locker room afterward where they pumped the song “Gasolina” by Daddy Yankee.

A cross-checking penalty on No. 8-2A Holy Family at the end of regulation put Orono on the power play to start overtime.

The Spartans took full advantage and controlled play in what ended up being a brief overtime period. They continued some momentum they built in the later stages of the third period, as they swarmed the offensive zone trying to find the go-ahead goal in regulation.

The game was scoreless after one period of play before Holy Family took a 1-0 lead at 1:33 of the second period on the power play. Freshman Haley Box turned in the slot and fired a shot on net for her 19th goal of the season. But the lead was short-lived. About two minutes later, Orono sophomore Macy Rasmussen tied the game with her 10th goal of the season.

“That was a huge pick-me-up,” Olimb said. “We talk about that, how you respond to goals or after we score a goal.

“It got the bench believing again.”

This season, Orono has tied No. 4-1A Simley, No. 3-1A Proctor/Hermantown, No. 6-1A South St. Paul and No. 11-2A Benilde-St. Margaret’s. They played three consecutive overtime games Jan. 6-10 with a 3-3 tie at South St. Paul, a 6-5 victory at No. 16-2A Northfield the next day and then a 5-5 draw at Benilde-St. Margaret’s.

“I think we’re definitely used to being in close games,” Olimb said. “I mean, they’ve all been good teams that we’ve played. It should help down the line. We’re used to being in close games, and the girls don’t get nervous.”

In the Northfield overtime victory, Lopez scored only 1 minute, 38 seconds into the extra session. She’s the team leader in goals (27) and points (37). She’s skilled offensively, plus part of her production is being in the right place at the right time on the ice, Olimb said, adding that if she gets the chance, “she’s going to put it away.”

For Orono senior goaltender Celia Dahl, she said finishing the game in overtime with a win was a big relief. She made a season-high 36 saves in the game, which was a bit of a rarity this season because of the strong Orono defense in front of her, according to Dahl. Thursday marked only the fourth time she’s seen 30-plus shots in a game.

“I didn’t even see a shot in that overtime,” Dahl said. “We really dominated. I think we were kind of on the up throughout that whole game. It started off kind of slow for us. And the second, third period kept getting better. In overtime, we just dominated them.”

With the cross-class upset, the Spartans (16-3-4), have won six games in a row and haven’t lost since Dec. 28. The defeat snaps a three-game winning streak for the Fire (18-6-1) and ends their regular season.

Holy Family has also played in six overtime games this season, though their fates haven’t been as good as Orono, losing four times in overtime with a 1-4-1 record. Thursday, they outshot Orono 37-22 and controlled play, especially early on.

“We were getting good shots, but we threw everything up high,” Holy Family coach Randy Koeppl said  “Didn’t generate too many rebounds.

“You’ve got to throw some stuff down low and get in front of them and tip and screen. That’s how you win these types of games.”