An ex-University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey player pleaded guilty Monday morning to sexually assaulting a female UMD student at her home.

St. Louis County prosecutors agreed to drop two more serious sexual assault charges against Blair Noel LeFebvre, 23, of Prince George, B.C., Canada. As a result, he will avoid a trial that was scheduled to begin Monday afternoon.

LeFebvre stood with Duluth attorney Robert Mathias before 6th Judicial District Judge John Oswald and pleaded guilty to fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. By doing so, he admitted to touching her vagina and breasts without her consent.

He probably will receive a state guideline sentence of two years' probation, undergo a psychological-sexual social evaluation and register as a sex offender. If LeFebvre successfully completes the conditions of probation, the remaining charge will be reduced to a misdemeanor.

His official sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 16 before Oswald. LeFebvre's victim could choose to confront him then by reading a victim-impact statement.

"The reality is there were lots of factual twists and turns, so we felt it was better to come to this agreement rather than letting 12 strangers decide his fate," said Mathias, LeFebvre's attorney.

The Canadian initially faced a state guideline sentence of two years in prison for allegedly trying to force himself on the woman in the early morning of April 17, 2005, at her rented home on Arrowhead Road.

The two knew each other and had watched a movie together that night before she went to bed feeling ill. He was drunk and unwanted, she said, when LeFebvre later slipped into bed with her.

More than a full day later, the victim, now 21, told UMD police that he'd grabbed her breasts, penetrated her vagina with his hand and attempted to rape her.

She also said he pinned her down and repeatedly threw her on the bed before she was able to get him to leave with the help of a roommate, according to the criminal complaint.

The former freshman winger played only in the 2004-05 season. He was released by the UMD hockey team soon after the charges were filed a year ago and before the season began. At the time, UMD officials said only that LeFebvre was let go for a violation of team rules.

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