Sports stats



ECHL Reading Royals

Reading Claims Five of a Possible Six Points This Week

March 10, 2003 - ECHL (ECHL)
Reading Royals News Release


The Reading Royals kept their first post-season playoff berth alive this week claiming five of a possible six points. The Royals hosted the Trenton Titans Wednesday night in a game, which was originally schedule for February 16, but was postponed due to weather conditions. History was made when Ray DiLauro scored a natural hat trick in 40-seconds to help the Royals force overtime with the Titans. Reading prevailed 4-3 in a shootout. Friday, the Royals hosted the Wheeling Nailers for the final time this season. Reading made it a perfect six for six with a 5-3 come-from-behind victory. The Royals finished the week at home against the Johnstown Chiefs. The Chiefs overcame a two goal deficit in the third period to force overtime. Johnstown would spoil Reading's perfect week with a 5-4 shootout win.

This week the Royals embark on the start of a four-game road swing, which begins on Saturday in Roanoke against the Express. Sunday, Reading travels to Charlotte to battle the Checkers. The Royals enter this week trailing Roanoke and Trenton by eight points for the final playoff position in the Northeast Division.

THIS WEEK (All times Eastern)

Saturday, March 15 @ Roanoke Roanoke Civic Center 7:35PM

GAME NOTES: A monumental game for Reading's playoff chances comes next Saturday in Roanoke. The Express have had the Royals number this season posting a 5-1-0 record. Roanoke's Jason Jaffray (7-8) and Rick Kowalsky (5-9) have a combined 29 points in this series. Royals goaltender Jeff Sanger was in net for the lone Reading win.

Sunday, March 16 @ Charlotte Cricket Arena 3:05PM

GAME NOTES: The final meeting of a scheduled six in the regular season. The Royals are 2-2-1 against the Checkers this season. Reading is 1-0-1 in Cricket Arena in Charlotte. Brad Rooney (3g, 5a) and Simon Tremblay (1g, 6a) lead all scorers in the series. Jeff Sanger has appeared in net for all five games against the Checkers.

LAST WEEK

Wednesday, March 5 vs. Trenton Sovereign Center 7:05PM

GAME NOTES: The Reading Royals broke a three game losing skid to the Trenton Titans with a 4-3 come-from-behind shootout victory. Ray DiLauro sparked the Royals comeback with a natural hat trick in a 40-second span. The first two DiLauro goals were just seven seconds apart. Steve Rymsha was the only scorer in the shootout. Royals goaltender Jeff Sanger stopped all five shooters in the shootout for Reading.

Friday, March 7 vs. Wheeling Sovereign Center 7:05PM

GAME NOTES: The Royals made it a perfect six for six with their 5-3 win over the Nailers. Brad Rooney and Geoff Peters each chipped in two goals to lead the Royals. Reading netminder Jeff Sanger stopped 25 shots to pick up his 20th win of the season.

Saturday, March 8 vs. Johnstown Sovereign Center 7:05PM

GAME NOTES: For only the second time this season the Royals lost a game in overtime or a shootout when leading after 40-minutes. The Johnstown Chiefs picked up three third period goals en route to a 5-4 shootout win. Joe Goodenow (1g, 1a), Steve Rymsha (1g, 1a) and Craig Brunel (2a) each chipped in two points for Reading in the loss. Dmitri Tarabrin scored the game winner for the Chiefs in the shootout.

ECHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE:

RAY DILAURO 3GP TEAM RECORD: 2-0-1 PTS: 3G 1A – 4PTS - Recorded Natural Hat Trick
DiLauro highlighted this successful week for Reading with a natural hat trick against the Trenton Titans Wednesday night. The Bensalem native scored three consecutive goals 40-seconds apart. DiLauro was also a plus 6 this week in three games.
RAY DILAURO 6'2" 241LBS HOMETOWN: BENSALEM, PA DOB: 7-13-79
LAST YEAR: ST. LAWRENCE (NCAA) AMATEUR CLUB: ST. LAWRENCE (NCAA)
DRAFT STATUS: 1999 – ATLANTA THRASHERS – 9TH ROUND, 246TH OVERALL

ECHL GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK NOMINEE:

JEFF SANGER 3GP RECORD: 2-0-1 GAA: 3.15 SPCT: .887% TEAM RECORD: 2-0-1
Jeff Sanger notched his 19th and 20th wins of the season with wins over Trenton and Wheeling. Sanger stopped eight of ten shooters in two shootouts this week.
JEFF SANGER 5'10" 170LBS HOMETOWN: MADISON, WI DOB: 11-14-78
LAST YEAR: COLORADO COLLEGE AMATEUR CLUB: COLORADO COLLEGE DRAFT STATUS: NA

PLAYER APPEARANCES:

Make reservations today for the following special events:

3/11 TUESDAY 11:45 a.m.- 2 p.m., Final Power Play Luncheon of the season, with the coaching staff and selected Royals, By reservation only 610-898-7317.

3/25 TUESDAY Doors open at 6 p.m., 2003 Fan's Choice Awards Banquet presented by Reading Eagle, Sovereign Center, Recognize your favorite players, Enjoy great food and entertainment, Silent auction table with proceeds benefiting Royals Charities, By reservation by 3/14 only 610-898-7213, $30 per person.

IN THE COMMUNITY: The Royals face off at Casa Grande tonight with Royals Weekly. Royals Weekly can be heard live on ESPN Radio, 1240AM and new affiliate WPAZ, 1370AM from Casa Grande from 6-7 p.m. #24 Geoff Peters will be our special guest. Head coach David Lohrei will join us as well. Your calls are welcome at 866-379-1240. The taping of Royals Roundtable follows from 7-8 p.m.

TRANSACTIONS:

3/01/03 Delete BRIAN MCCULLOUGH (C) recalled to Manchester (AHL)
Delete HUNTER LAHACHE (D) placed on 7 day IR
3/03/03 Add MAT SNESRUD (D) assigned from Manchester (AHL)
Add BRIAN MCCULLOUGH (C) assigned from Manchester (AHL)
3/05/03 Add JOE GOODENOW (C) added to roster
Add WILL MAGNUSON (D) added to roster

TICKETS AND INFORMATION: The Reading Royals Box Office is open from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. at the Sovereign Center. Individual tickets can be purchased at the Sovereign Center Box Office or at any TicketMaster location. To order tickets by phone, call 215-336-2000. To book a group to a Royals game call 610-898-7825.

ROYALS ON THE AIRWAVES: All Reading Royals games, home and away, are broadcast on ESPN Radio, 1240AM and affiliate 1370AM. Join the Voice of the Royals, John Curtis for all the play-by-play action. The Buy-Rite Liquidators pre-game show comes your way 20 minutes before the drop of the puck.

Check out the Reading Royals Statistics

• Discuss this story on the ECHL message board...

ECHL Stories from March 10, 2003


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.

OurSports Central