Team Prairie shuts out Team Thunder
Published on October 6, 2009 under International Hockey League 2 (IHL 2)
Bloomington PrairieThunder News Release
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Left wing Robin Gomez scored two goals and had an assist to lead Team Prairie to a 6-0 victory over Team Thunder in a team scrimmage at the Bloomington PrairieThunder preseason training camp Tuesday at the Pepsi Ice Center.
Team Prairie scored three goals in each of the two periods. Other players scoring goals were team captain Jon Booras, Craig Macdonald, Justin Sawyer and rookie Trevor Geiger, who added two assists.
Booras also had two assists, while Takuma Kawai, Bill Bagron and Jake Machel had one assist each.
Team Prairie goalies Paulo Colaiacovo and Andrew Martin combined for the shutout by swatting away a total of 21 shots. Martin faced 11 shots and Coloaiacova 10. Team Thunder goalies Ryan Ludzik and Ryan Gibb each allowed three goals. Ludzik faced 15 shots and Gibb 10.
"Some of the young guys really stepped up," said coach Jarrod Skalde. "Now we need the veteran guys to lead the way. Things are starting to sort out and we saw a little separation in the talent levels today."
The PrairieThunder will continue two-a-day workouts Wednesday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. until 3 p.m. The afternoon sessions will be reserved for scrimmages. The public is invited to attend all practice sessions.
Bloomington opens the exhibition season Saturday against Quad Cities with a 7 p.m. International Hockey League contest at the Decatur Civic Center. Tickets are $10 for adults and can be purchased by calling 309-585-0507, ext. 304.
PrairieThunder announces office staff additions
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Bloomington PrairieThunder coach Jarrod Skalde isn't the only member of the organization assembling a team and making changes for the 2009-10 season.
PrairieThunder president Tim Leighton officially announced front office staff promotions and additions during a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house Tuesday at the organization's new office location at 318 W. Washington St., Bloomington.
"This is indeed an exciting time in PrairieThunder hockey with the start of the new season just around the corner," said Leighton. "It's also exciting to open our new office to the public and introduce the public to new front office staff members.
"While the PrairieThunder organization enjoyed its first three years sharing office space at U.S. Cellular Coliseum, we had grown to the point where we needed our own space," Leighton continued. "We also felt it was time to continue to grow our own identity and personality in our own offices."
Leighton announced that Donna Wampler is the Manager of General Operations; Chad Bevers is the Director of Sales; and Allison Gronski is the Community Relations Manager.
In addition, Leighton said that Josh Bartolazzi has been promoted from a ticket account executive to Ticket Operations Manager, while Kyle Anderson has been promoted from Community Relations representative to Manager of Sales and Game Operations.
Bryan Bloodworth remains as Assistant General Manager and Director of Media Relations, while Anderson will continue to handle game day operations.
Bloodworth has been with the organization since its first season. Bartolazzi is in his second year with the PrairieThunder, while Anderson begins his second season. Bevers, Gronski and Wampler are in their initial seasons.
"Some of these folks are very recognizable faces in the organization and have played key roles in the growth of PrairieThunder hockey," Leighton continued. "Others have joined the organization at various times over the last six months and have been working very hard to further our success."
Wampler, who retired after a 34-year career with State Farm Insurance in May after holding various management positions, oversees the day-to-day operations of the staff, including sponsorships, ticket sales and game operations.
She is a native of Owensboro, Ky., and graduated from Middle Tennessee State with a degree in accounting. Wampler resides in Bloomington with her husband, Paul, and they have four grown children and nine grandchildren.
Bevers is a native of Bloomington and a 1995 graduate of Normal Community High School. He will direct the PrairieThunder efforts in building an increased fan base through ticket sales, increased sponsorship and helping to create a strong infrastructure for the front office sales staff.
He came to the PrairieThunder from The Heller Automotive Stores in El Paso, Chenoa and Pontiac where he was the Internet Sales Specialist. He was the primary contact for all third-party generated leads and sales.
Bevers provided guidance and direction for the Heller Stores dealer group by overseeing the internet marketing and sales directives for all three stores.
Prior to that position, Bevers served as the Internet Sales Manager for Rebbec Pontiac Buick in Normal for three years. He was the primary contact for all Internet generated sales and leads. He also created, developed, initiated and maintained on-line marketing strategies.
Bevers began his career in the work-force with the Occupational Development Center. He was the Production Manager and oversaw a workshop specializing in assembly, packaging, collating and custom processes to meet customer needs.
He also was responsible for following up on all sales leads, quoting all jobs, and ensuring that all materials and supplies were ordered and delivered on time to meet production schedules.
Bevers resides in Towanda with his wife, Amy.
Gronski, a recent graduate of Illinois State University with a degree in public relations and recreation administration, served as an intern in the PrairieThunder front office last spring working in game operations, community relations and communications.
Bartolazzi is now responsible for coordinating all aspects of the ticket sales department, including season and group tickets, marketing, and customer service. He is a graduate from Lincoln College-Normal with a degree in sports management.
Anderson, a graduate of Illinois State University with a degree in recreation administration, joined the PrairieThunder staff last season after completing an internship with the Nashville Sports Council and Gaylord Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn.
International Hockey League 2 Stories from October 6, 2009
- Team Prairie shuts out Team Thunder - Bloomington PrairieThunder
- 'Meet the PrairieThunder Night' set - Bloomington PrairieThunder
- Generals Invite Fans Out To Dinner - Flint Generals
- Dayton Gems Offer Free Taste Of Hockey - Dayton Gems
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