After four consecutive Friday-night defeats, maybe this was a baby step in the right direction for Colorado College.

The Tigers got 32 saves from Richard Bachman along with a goal by Matt Overman just 1:04 into their series opener with the University of Minnesota Duluth, but had to settle for a 1-1 tie at the World Arena that extended their winless streak on Fridays to seven weeks.

They came out like gangbusters, seizing the early lead when junior winger Overman beat Bulldogs goaltender Alex Stalock with a backhand from the slot before most of the crowd had settled into their seats. Sophomore defenseman Ryan Lowery and junior center Andreas Vlassopoulos assisted on the tally.

But, after that, Stalock was unbeatable. He made seven of his 28 saves in overtime, including a pair on Vlassopoulos from point-blank range in the final 15 seconds. Bachman may have made the stop of the game with 40.4 seconds left, however, keeping the contest even with some slick glove work on a quick wrister by UMD’s Drew Akins.

Bachman, who blanked Duluth in three of four meetings last season, saw his shutout streak against the Bulldogs end at 233 minutes and 47 seconds when Josh Meyers scored during a power play at 16:01 of the second period.

With the point, CC pulled to within one of idle Minnesota and first place in the WCHA standings. The Tigers, 9-4-4 overall and 6-3-2 in league play, head into Saturday’s rematch tied with Wisconsin for second place. Minnesota Duluth, 6-4-5 overall and 3-4-4 in the WCHA, is tied for sixth.