BILOXI, MS - The Mississippi Surge jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first period and never looked back as they defeated the Louisiana Ice Gators 7-3 to conclude a six-game home stand on Saturday night.With the Surge on a power play early in the first period, Matt Zultek redirected Chris Greene's pass into the net at 5:47 for his first goal of the night and a 1-0 Surge lead. Just 17 seconds later, Greene scored on a one-timer from the top of the slot to give Mississippi a 2-0 lead. Sixty-nine seconds later, Tom Boudreau converted on a pass from Tim Velemirovich for a 3-0 lead, and at 9:09 of the first, Andy Boudreau scored the first goal of his pro career to give Mississippi a 4-0 lead.
Louisiana battled back in the early going of the seconds, potting a goal at 1:47 from Josh Bonar and another at 2:56 by Frank Littlejohn to cut the lead to two and chase Mississippi starting goalie Ryan Senft from the net. At 5:39, Daryl Moore of the Ice Gators potted a power play goal, but that was all the offense Louisiana would get.
Matt Zultek blasted home two more goals in the second period to complete the first hat trick in Surge history, and Stephen Schofield added his third goal of the weekend to secure the 7-3 win for the Surge.
Ryan Senft earned the win, making 13 saves in 23 minutes of action, and Bill Zaniboni made 19 saves in 37 minutes of relief work.
The Surge are back home on December 12 against the Fayetteville FireAntz! Game time is 7:30 p.m., and the Surge have partnered with CableOne for a holiday food drive. Every fan who brings a can of food will get $2 off the price of admission to the game! Get your tickets today at the Box Office or by calling 287-PUCK!
• Discuss this story on the Southern Professional Hockey League message board...
• Digg this story
• Add to Del.icio.us
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.