RoughRiders with miraculous 5-4 win at Dubuque

DUBUQUE - The best victory of the season? Quite possibly.

Matt Filipe scored his second goal of the game 4:42 into overtime Saturday night to give the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders a miraculous 5-4 win over the Dubuque Fighting Saints.

The Riders trailed, 4-2, with under two minutes left in regulation. Justin Cole deflected in a shot to make it a one-goal game with 1:55 to go, then Ross Colton tied things at 4-4 with a goal with 23 seconds left, with goaltender Ben Blacker out for an extra attacker.

In the seven-minute, three-on-three extra period, Filipe won it on assists from Jacob Hayhurst and Mitch Reinke. Goals from Filipe and newcomer Karch Bachman gave Cedar Rapids a 2-1 lead 1:42 into the second period, but Dubuque scored the next three goals to presumably take the lead for good.

Cedar Rapids leads the United States Hockey League with a 27-10-3 record and 57 standings points. Dubuque and Green Bay are six points back, Youngstown eight points back and Bloomington nine points behind.

The top four team in the Eastern Conference qualify for the playoffs.