PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Tier I hockey and tee-ball are at opposite ends of the sports spectrum, but there are those times when every participant really does deserve a trophy.

When the Mid-Fairfield Chiefs and Team Wisconsin locked up in an epic overtime showdown, it was a shame that either team was going to skate off the ice without the championship hardware in hand.

After beating a tough and disciplined Culver Academy team to get here, they continued to exceed expectations as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead.

The Chiefs opened the scoring thanks to the hard work of Jordi Jefferson, who picked a Wisconsin defender's pocket and found Christian LeSeuer staring at an empty net. 

They padded the lead 19 seconds into the second frame when Ryan Doolin took a pass from Nick VanBelle and drove hard to the net to beat Wisconsin goaltender Sam Dunn.

As their first four opponents learned the hard way, no lead is safe when facing this spunky and skilled team from the heartland of America. 

Cole Caufield may not the biggest or the strongest player on the ice. And he's probably not the fastest skater or possesses the hardest shot. But the Mosinee, Wis., native has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. Just ask Shattuck-St. Mary's, whose season came to an end when Caulfield scored the game winner in overtime in the semifinals.

He was back at it on Monday, scoring 14 seconds into the final frame to cut the lead in half with his tournament-leading seventh goal. Ian Malcolmson followed suit less than three minutes later to knot the score.

"We’ve played better games, which is probably the toughest pill for these guys to swallow," said Wisconsin head coach Luke Strand. "Our game from the beginning to end was like night and day. We needed to have a better start, especially against such a talented team."

With momentum on their side, Brady Bjork gave Wisconsin a short-lived lead before Christian LeSeuer tucked a shot under the crossbar for an unassisted power-play goal to force an extra session.

"The boys played their hearts out. I don’t know how much gas they had, either team. I think they were playing on pure adrenaline," Conner said in between hugs with his players. "I’m just so happy for our guys. I’ve never seen a team come together so quickly and play that hard in my life."