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Wings Rock Toronto 11-9

April 6, 2008 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Philadelphia Wings News Release


PHILADELPHIA - The home field and a strong defense were all Philadelphia needed in an 11-9 win Sunday against Toronto at the Wachovia Center in front of 10,244 fans. The team had lost three straight on the road since the All-Star break. Athan Iannucci led the Wings with four goals and an assist, while goalie Rob Blasdell made 51 saves. With the win, the Wings are now tied for first place in the East Division with the Minnesota Swarm. The Wings next home game is Saturday, April 19 vs. the New York Titans at 8:00 p.m.

"Our defense played great all night," said Wings' Head Coach Dave Huntley. "We got a little off the mark (the last few games) but it seemed like we got back on track. This was an important game." The goalies stole the show in the first quarter, combining for 27 saves. Each team registered just one goal, from Philadelphia's Jake Bergey and Toronto's Ryan Benesch. The Rock opened the scoring in the second quarter, but Philadelphia took the advantage with a hat trick from Athan Iannucci. Merrick Thomson also added a goal for Philadelphia. The Wings took a 5-3 lead into halftime.

Toronto scored the first goal of the second half from Blaine Manning, but was shut out for the rest of the third quarter. Philadelphia netted four unanswered goals (Sweeney, Christmas, Iannucci, Rooney) to go up by five with one quarter remaining. The Wings barely held on in the final quarter as they were outscored, 5-2.

Athan Iannucci (4G,1A) led the Wings in scoring with five points. Six other players scored goals for Philadelphia, including Jake Bergey (1G,3A), Merrick Thomson (2G,3A), John Christmas (1G,3A) , Jamie Rooney (1G,3A), A.J. Shannon (1G), and Kyle Sweeney (1G,1A). Goaltender Rob Blasdell made 51 saves.

Ryan Benesch led the Rock in scoring with four points (3G,1A). Five other players scored for Toronto, including Kasey Beirnes (1G), Lewis Ratcliff (2G,2A), Aaron Wilson (1G,1A), Blaine Manning (1G,1A), and Scott Campbell (1G,1A). Goaltender Bob Watson had 50 saves.

For a complete scoring of tonight's game, log on to www.pointstreak.com.

The Wings travel to Portland and Minnesota before returning for their final home game of the regular season on Saturday, April 19 at Wachovia Center at 7:30 p.m. Great seats are still available and can be purchased by visiting www.wingslax.com or at the Complex Box Office.

The Philadelphia Wings are owned and operated by Philadelphia Wings L.P. whose principal owners are Russ Cline, Chris Fritz, and Michael French. Comcast-Spectacor serves as the marketing, promotional, advertising, sponsorship, and publicity arm of the Wings.

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