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SPHL Fayetteville Marksmen

Antz Playoff Drive Hits a Bump

March 3, 2003 - SPHL (SPHL)
Fayetteville Marksmen News Release


THIS WEEK:

THU March 6 FireAntz @ ORLANDO 7:00 p.m. TD Waterhouse Center

Cape Fear will try and end their four game losing streak in a building they have never won in. Orlando has recently locked up the Commissioner's Cup, awarded to the team with the ACHL's best regular season record. The Antz currently sit behind the Winston-Salem Parrots by .042 percentage points for the fourth and final payoff spot.

Season Series: Orlando leads 8-2

FRI March 7 Macon @ FIREANTZ 7:35 p.m. Crown Coliseum

These two teams have battled throughout the whole season. With ten games in the books, each team has won five. This will be the last visit to the Crown for Macon during the regular season. Macon will ride in looking to lock up the third seed. These two teams will meet one more time a week later in Macon.

Season Series: Series tied 5-5

LAST WEEK:

THU Feb. 27 FireAntz @ JACKSONVILLE 7:00 p.m. Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Coliseum

Many thought this would be a game won by the Antz. The FireAntz dominated Jacksonville all season by winning six of the first nine meetings. The past trends were reversed as Jacksonville crushed the Antz 8-3. Cape Fear was never really in the game as the Barracudas stormed out of the gate with a slew of goals early on. The Antz defense let goalie Ken Shepard down by not clearing rebound and letting Jacksonville bury them in the net. Geoff Derouin came in for relief duty early in the second period, but suffered the same fate as Shepard. Forward Aaron Shrieves was the lone bright spot for the Antz as he scored two goals.

FRI Feb. 28 Orlando @ FIREANTZ 7:35 p.m. Crown Coliseum

On an ice battlefield clad with camouflage armor, the Cape Fear FireAntz fought hard against Orlando fueled by their hopes to keep their playoff hopes alive. But after losing the last contest against the Antz, the Orlando Seals were determined not to let another one slip away as they beat the home team 3-1.

At 4:37 in the first period, the Seals attacked first when Mike Sanderson scored a shorthanded goal to put the visitors up 1-0. After giving up just one goal, Ken Shepard would settle down, stopping 16 out of 17 shots in the first period.

The FireAntz counter-attacked early in the second period when Ryan Kiley scored a goal at the 7:37 mark, his 25th of the season. The entire second period was all out war as both teams matched each other shot for shot in what became a very fast-paced game. The Antz defense was impressive. They began executing the fore check effectively as well as playing aggressive offense. The second period, however, ended on a sour note for the Antz as Brad Federenko netted the Seals' second goal at 17:51.

The Antz picked up the pace once again in the third as they battled to relinquish their one goal deficit. But after Orlando's Mark White put in their third goal, the Antz hopes for a victory were dampened.

SUN Mar. 1 Winston-Salem @ FIREANTZ 2:35 p.m. Crown Coliseum

Two in-state rivals battled in a goal and penalty filled game on Sunday afternoon. The Winston-Salem Parrots beat the Cape Fear FireAntz 5-4 in Atlantic Coast Hockey League (ACHL) action.

It looked bleak heading into the third period for the FireAntz. Winston-Salem outplayed the Antz to take a 5-2 advantage into the locker room for the second intermission.

Whatever was said in the locker room gave the Antz the jump start they needed. Twelve minutes into the final frame Don Martin scored his first goal in a FireAntz uniform to cut the Parrot lead to two.

Three minutes later Cape Fear appeared to have pulled within one goal when Brett Annetts fired a laser beam past Parrots goalie Dean Weasler. As the fans and players celebrated at the Crown, referee Clay Sigurdson waved off the power play goal.

Sigurdson claimed Antz assistant captain Peter Cermak interfered with Weasler. As the puck came off Annetts' stick, Cermak skated to the crease area to set a screen. As Weasler left the crease to get a better angle for the save, his stick collided with Cermak's leg, which sent the stick flying. In addition to the goal not being allowed Cermak received a penalty for goaltender interference.

The FireAntz regrouped and at the 17:01 mark Ryan Kiley netted his 26th goal of the year to bring the home team to within one goal. Just when it looked like the Antz had momentum, they were called for a second goaltender interference by Chris Cerrella at the 18:05 mark.

Eventually it would end up four-on-four to finish the game, but the FireAntz were not able to get the equalizing goal. For the game Jasen Rintala and Peter Cermak scored the other Antz goals.

FIREANTZ NEWS

· "Fan Appreciation Night" is Friday, March 7. The first 2000 fans in attendance will receive a FireAntz rally towel, compliments of Time Warner Cable. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

· "Ticket Redemption Night" is Friday, March 7. Puck drop versus Macon is 7:35 p.m.

· FireAntz season tickets are on sale NOW! Call the Antz at 910-321-0123 for more information.

· If Winston-Salem does not play their full 60 game schedule, final standings will be determined by winning percentage.

· The FireAntz have the following appearances this week: March 3-J.W. Seabrook School, Fayetteville (1 p.m.)

TEAM NOTES:

· MARC GENEST has been activated.

· RYAN OLSON has been activated.

· BRUCE WATSON has been suspended by the team.

· The ACHL assigned Jasen Rintala to the FireAntz.

· As a team, the FireAntz are second in the league with ten shorthanded goals.

STANDOUTS:

· KEN SHEPARD is second in the ACHL with a .911 save percentage.

· CHRIS CERRELLA is fourth in the ACHL with 28 goals.

· PETER CERMAK has 49 assists, good for third in the league.

· MATT KOHANSKY is on the door stop of the league's top ten scorers. He is currently 11th with 57 points (23G, 34A).

FIREANTZ GOALIE OF THE WEEK:

· GEOFF DEROUIN- In his relief appearance against Jacksonville (Feb. 27), DEROUIN made 21 saves out of the 24 shots fired at him in 35 minutes. DEROUIN tried to keep his team in the game when the Antz mounted a mini second period comeback.

FIREANTZ PLAYER OF THE WEEK:

· CHRIS CERRELLA-CERRELLA was a bright spot in a dark week for the FireAntz. The New York native had three assists and fired nine shots in the games this week. He also defended his ice well as the Antz were outscored 16-8, but CERRELLA only had a -1 rating.

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