Manatees Fall to Slammers, 5-3

January 2, 2004 - SPHL (SPHL)
Miami Manatees News Release


Miami – The Miami Manatees fell to the Alabama Slammers 5-3 in their first visit to Alabama in front of 2400 fans.

The Slammers got on the board first on a goal from Hugo Belanger, playing in his first game with the Slammers. 24 seconds later, Belanger got his second of three points on the night when he assisted on Jaroslav Kresec's goal on a 2-0 breakaway.

The Manatees came back at 16:57 of the first on a power-play goal from Ron Baker. Baker made his first appearance in a Manatee uniform, and his goal was the only power-play goal of the game.

In the second period, Alabama got two goals before the half-way point, but Oak Hewer kept the Manatees in the game with a goal to finish up the 2nd period scoring at 16:33. The second period ended with the Slammers having a two-goal lead.

Entering the third period, the Manatees kept the pressure on the Slammers and Eric Perricone converted a partial breakaway and scored on Fred Beaubien at 7:09. But the Slammers persevered and went ahead by the final score of 5-3.

Manatees goaltender Mark Gowan made 23 saves on 27 shots, while Fred Beaubien earned his 4th win of the season by stopping 27 of 30 Miami shots.

The Manatees head to Jacksonville Saturday night for a home and home series. The next Manatees home game is January 4th at 7:05pm.

The Miami Manatees face off against the Alabama Slammers, Jacksonville Barracudas, Lakeland Loggerheads, Macon Trax, and Orlando Seals in the WHA2's inaugural season. All games are broadcast on www.irn.fm.

Season Tickets for the Miami Manatees are now on sale. For further information, please contact the Manatees at (305) 536-PUCK (7825) or visit www.miamimanatees.com.



SPHL Stories from January 2, 2004


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