MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The Alaska Anchorage Seawolves booked their ticket to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Red Baron Final Five tournament for the second time in UAA history after blanking the No. 17-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers, 2-0, in Game 2 of their best-of-3 first-round playoff series Saturday at Mariucci Arena.

Goals by sophomore Mickey Spencer and senior Tommy Grant and outstanding goaltending by freshman Chris Kamal gave the Seawolves (16-17-3) a spot at the five-game league tournament in St. Paul, Minn., on March 17-19. UAA claimed the bid in conjunction with a 4-3 win on Friday night. The only other time the Seawolves qualified for the tournament was in 2003-04, after besting Wisconsin.

“All the credit goes to the guys,” said head coach Dave Shyiak . “They were determined, hungry, and earned it.”

UAA held on to the 2-0 lead in the final six minutes of play, including the last two minutes with the Gophers skating with an extra attacker, for its third shutout of the season and fifth straight win. The last time the Seawolves put together a string of five wins was in 1998-99, and Saturday's win gives UAA its most overall victories since becoming a member of the league in 1993-94.

After a scoreless two periods of play, Spencer (Gibbons, Alberta) tallied his first goal of the season at 2:32 of the final stanza. Freshman forward Jordan Kwas found Spencer, who skated into the Gopher zone, past a defender and went top-shelf, glove-side for the 1-0 lead.

Grant, a forward from North Vancouver, B.C., handed the Seawolves the two-goal lead at 13:24, following a scoring chance by UM. The UAA defense, which blocked 25 shots throughout the night, cleared the puck to Grant for the breakaway goal. Freshman forward Brett Cameron picked up his second assist on the night, while junior defenseman Brad Gorham was credited with the second assist.

Kamal was solid in net for the fifth straight time, making 23 saves for his third collegiate shutout – the most for a Seawolf since Doug Teskey had four in 1997-98. The local of Alpharetta, Ga., stood on his head for much of the game, keeping the Gophers scoreless for the second time of the season.

The sweep is UAA's fourth of the season, and second straight on the road after sweeping Minnesota State on March 4-5.

“It was great honor to be on the bench with this team,” said Shyiak. “As a coach, this is one of the greatest moments I've experienced.”

UAA was the No. 8 seed, while Minnesota entered the weekend as the No. 5 seed. The Gophers had previously been 12-0 in first-round series at home, including a 24-1 overall record.

The WCHA will finalize the Final Five schedule once the first-round series are over. Teams will then be re-seeded No.1 through No.6, according to their regular-season finish.