SharX Get Aggressive in Fourth Quarter, Pull out 21-17 Win Over Syracuse
February 14, 2012 - Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL)
Norfolk SharX News Release
Norfolk, Virginia - Behind hat tricks by both Brandon Massie and Matt Clare the Norfolk SharX outplayed and outscored the Syracuse Silver Knights at Scope Tuesday night to come away with a 21-17 win over the team that beat them 21-4 on Thursday at the Oncenter. From the opening kickoff, the SharX took the game to Syracuse, and the message was "not going to happen again in our house!"
Massie opened the scoring for Norfolk in the third minute with an assist by Cecil Lewis. Lewis took a hard shot from the right corner and the Syracuse defense missed the clearance allowing the ball to land at Massie's feet. He didn't waste any time taking the SharX up 2-0. Syracuse then got two quick back to back goals from Andriy Budnyy and Enrique Tovar to make it 5-2 at the end of the first fifteen minutes.
But the SharX came right back in the second quarter scoring seven unanswered points- Massie scored his second with an assist from Marcuse Schmidt, Miguel Ferrer netted a 3-pointer on a restart and Matt Clare tallied his first of the game with an assist from goalkeeper Jamie Lieberman. Budnyy added two points for the Silver Knights but SharX forward James Gunderson put another three points on the board for the SharX to make it 12-7 at the half.
The SharX allowed the Silver Knights back into the game in the third period - Cory Elenio scored four points followed by four from Jon Gruenewald. And the score was 15-12 with 15 minutes left in the game.
But Norfolk was not going to be denied this win. In the third minute of the final period Syracuse Slavisa Ubiparapovic was called for a handball in the penalty area and SharX forward Gerson Dos Santos buried the resulting penalty kick to bring Norfolk back to within one, 15-14. Cory Elenio scored his third of the night less than two minutes later to take Syracuse back 17-14. Nelson Santana was then also called for a handball in the box and Matt Clare took advantage of the second penalty kick in the quarter making the score 17-16.
Clare scored his third with an assist by Dos Santos with less than two minutes to play to make it 18-17 for the SharX before Syracuse pulled their keeper Brian O'Quinn to make it six against five on the field. Massie didn't waste any time getting possession of the ball with the Syracuse goal empty and chipped the ball three quarters of the way down the field and into the qoal to take the SharX up 21-17.
The SharX defense held for the final minute and a half and Norfolk had avenged their loss on February 9 by scoring nine points in the fourth quarter.
"We were poor when we played in Syracuse," said head coach Jon Hall. "Everyone knew that we owed ourselves and everyone connected with the organization a better performance tonight and I think we got it."
The SharX final regular season matches will all be played at Norfolk Scope Arena: February 19 against Milwaukee, February 26 against Baltimore and March 4 against Wichita. Visit www.norfolksharX.com for special ticket prices!
For more information about the Norfolk SharX, Norfolk's newest professional sports team, including sponsorships, tickets, internships or to volunteer, please call 757-419-3317 or visit www.norfolksharx.com .
Major Indoor Soccer League Stories from February 14, 2012
- Silver Knights Trip Over SharX - Syracuse Silver Knights
- SharX Get Aggressive in Fourth Quarter, Pull out 21-17 Win Over Syracuse - Norfolk SharX
- Syracuse's Bryan O'Quinn Named MISL Player of the Week - Syracuse Silver Knights
- Syracuse's O'Quinn Named Player of the Week - MISL
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.
