Bendera Backstops Bakersfield Blowout
January 28, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL)
Bakersfield Condors News Release
Bakersfield, Calif. â Shane Bendera stopped 27 shots for his second shutout of the year, and Jason Ralph potted two goals as the Bakersfield Condors defeated the Fresno Falcons 6-0 in front of 4,893 fans at Centennial Garden on Tuesday night.
Ralph scored his first goal, unassisted, on the first Condors shot of the game, just 4:34 into the game to make it 1-0. That's all Bendera needed. He survived an early onslaught from Fresno, and by the time Ralph scored his second (on the Condors second shot of the game), Bakersfield had seized control. They rattled off nine consecutive shots and added a third goal late in the opening period by Mike Barrie for a 3-0 advantage through 20 minutes.
Kevin Riehl extended the lead during the second frame, finishing a clean set of passes along the right wing boards, chipping the centering feed home, and giving him his second point of the night and 14th goal of the season. Johan Astrom earned his second assist of the night on the goal. Riehl had a 10-game point streak end on Sunday night in San Diego and has a point in 16 of the last 18 games. Bendera was strong, stopping 20 shots through two periods.
Two more Condors goals in the third period capped the night, as Darren Shakotko picked up his fourth goal of the season on a strong single effort at 7:47. Then Barrie set up Paul Willett in the slot, who ducked past a pair of Falcons defenders to snap home his sixth of the year at 11:12. The Condors tightened up defensively from then on for their netminder, who finished the game with 27 saves and earned his fourth win since joining the team just before the New Year. Bakersfield improved to 5-1 against the Falcons this season, and 18-3-1 since the start of last season.
The Condors will head on the road this weekend, playing in Fresno on Friday and in San Diego on Saturday, both starting at 7:00pm. They'll return to home ice next Tuesday, hosting Fresno one more time at 7:00pm. All games, home and away, can be heard on KGEO AM 1230 and online at www.bakersfieldcondors.com, with "Condors Countdown" starting 15 prior to face off. The "Voice of the Condors" Kevin Bartl handles the play-by-play.
Individual tickets can be purchased at the Centennial Garden box office, which opens at 10:00am Monday through Saturday, by calling Ticketmaster at 322-2525, online at ticketmaster.com or stopping by any Ticketmaster location. Season and group tickets may be purchased by calling 324-PUCK (7825) or by visiting the Condors office next to Centennial Garden.
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