It’s seldom to see a tie that felt this much like a win for all involved.

Cheyenne Mountain and the Colorado Springs District 11 conglomerate team skated to a 2-2 tie Thursday night at Colorado College’s Ed Robson Arena.

Giant student sections turned out for both teams, the action was spirited and tight for a pair of teams that figure to hold their position in the middle of the playoff hunt and the game raised money for a boy named Bennett whose wish while battling illness is to go to a beach.

Certainly not a loss to be found.

“This is not typical,” Cheyenne Mountain coach Robert Austin said of the event feel surrounding the matchup. “This is a big night of the year. They brought a lot of fans. We brought a lot of fans. It’s fun for a kid to be able to play in front of a bunch of his friends. We don’t get a lot of that Friday Night Lights feel or a packed gym on a Thursday night, so this is our night and it was great.

“And we raised a lot of money for a kid who wants to go to the beach. What could be better?”

Ryker McCombe scored the first of his goals for D11 with 3:02 remaining in the first period on an assist from Carson Greene.

Cheyenne Mountain answered in an action-packed second period when Rhett Kircher scored to tie. D11, which had two shots bounce off the post in the period, tied it with McCombe’s second goal.

The Red-Tailed Hawks tied it with 11:44 remaining in the third period on a goal from Jesse Robbins on an assist from Luke Woodford.

The rest of regulation and the 5-minute overtime didn’t lack for opportunities for both teams, but goalkeepers Nolan Kimball from Cheyenne Mountain and Boston Leaver for D11 kept the game gridlocked.

Cheyenne Mountain (9-5-1) entered the game ranked fifth in 4A, with D11 (9-3-1) right behind it at No. 6. The top six teams earn a first-round bye in the 10-team playoff field.

This result doesn’t figure to hurt either team’s standing.

“We played well,” D11 coach Michael Tabrum said. “I’m pleased with our effort. A win would have been nice, but I’ll take the tie.

“I think our goal is to finish in the top six so we get a first-round bye in the playoffs. That’s our goal moving forward. We just need to take care of business the rest of the season and we should be there.”