Box Score WINNIPEG -- For the second time in as many games, the Manitoba Bisons and No.9 nationally ranked Mount Royal Cougars needed extra time to decide a winner, and once again it was the Herd coming out on top, with a 5-4 2OT victory at Wayne Fleming Arena on Saturday afternoon. 
 
The win improves Manitoba's record to 10-10, and they are just one point out of a playoff spot. The Cougars fell to 14-5-3, but are still in third in the conference standings. 
 
The win, which included a three-goal comeback, marks the first time since February of 2019 that Manitoba has played in back-to-back games that have gone to 2OT. Overall in the last three seasons, they're 6-1, and are 4-0 dating back to the 2021-22 season. 
 
The game-winner was scored 34 seconds into the sixth period, as forward Julia Bird got her stick on a loose puck in the crease following a shot from Molly Kunnas. The goal was the second of two that Manitoba scored on the power play. 
 
It was also Kunnas who sent the game to overtime, getting just enough of the puck on a deflection to the left of Kaitlyn Ross with just ten seconds left and the Bisons' goalie pulled, 
 
"We came together as a team. This was a really important weekend for us," Kunnas said. "I think we really stepped up and we worked together. It was a team effort, not one person did it all."
 
Mount Royal opened the scoring thanks to back-to-back power play goals a minute apart. 
 
Forward Emma Bergesen walked in, and at the hash mark, went blocker side for a goal to open the scoring at 6:19. Breanne Trotter was then able to get close to the ringette line, and with traffic in front, went high to make it 2-0.
 
As the period dwindled down, Cougars forward Courtney Kollman was left all alone on the back door but Bisons netminder Meagan Relf was able to make the save for her squad.
 
Eleven seconds into the middle period, Kollman came back for a wraparound and made it 3-0.
 
A desperate Bisons team took advantage of a valuable powerplay two minutes later. Defenceman Hanna Bailey took her time to walk in and went over the glove of Cougars netminder Kaitlyn Ross, to get her team on the board. It was her second goal of the weekend, and she added an assist later on. 
 
There was a lot of back and forth to start the third, with good chances for both teams. 
 
On a Bisons dump in, forward Kate Gregoire fed the puck to forward Jessie Haner who was in close. With the Cougars below the hash mark, she scored to give the Bisons two unanswered.
 
The Cougars drew a penalty almost immediately after the goal but couldn't get anything past Relf Later, defenceman Tori Williams shot, bounced it off the glove of Relf and then the crossbar before the light went red, making it 4-2 Cougars.
 
With just over two minutes left, Manitoba erased the two-goal deficit. A broken play in the Bisons defensive zone ended with a shot by Haner in the Cougars end, and a deflection by Aimee Patrick for a goal. It was Patrick's fifth goal of the season and third in the last three games. 
 
With just over a minute and a half to go, Relf was pulled for the extra player. The Bisons went to work, fighting to stay in it. With 20 seconds left in the game, they kept it in at the line, and forward Molly Kunnas crept to the side of the net to send it into overtime for the second time this weekend.
 
Nothing was solved in four-on-four, but a costly penalty gave Manitoba a power play for three-on-three and Bird closed the game out.