LAFAYETTE, La. � The Mississippi Sea Wolves won their third straight and pulled within two points of first place Louisiana, by defeating the IceGators 4-1.
With the win, the Sea Wolves catapult into second place in the Southwest Division with 68 points. The idle Pensacola Ice Pilots slip to third with 67 points.
Mississippi (32-19-4) opened the score on the power play at 7:47. Team captain Steffon Walby notched his league-leading 34th goal of the season, beating Kyle Kettles in front. Walby extends his scoring streak to five games, by netting his sixth goal over that span.
Louisiana (30-14-10) replied late in the first period on the man advantage. Shawn Skiehar poked the puck behind Sean Matile from a scramble in close at 19:21. Skiehar�s 5th of the campaign, tied the score 1-1.
In the second, Mississippi regained its lead at 8:09. Mike Scott lifted a shot over the left shoulder of Kettles. The goal for Scott was his 15th of the season, making it 2-1.
The Sea Wolves kept bringing the offense. Darryl Campbell let go with a shot from the left circle and hit the goal post. Jim Baxter followed and buried his 14th of the year, giving Mississippi a 3-1 cushion through 40 minutes of action.
In the third period, the IceGators pulled their goaltender trying to rally. But Sea Wolves� Dave Paradise potted an empty-netter for his 30th of the campaign.
Matile collected his 50th professional win, stopping 29-of-30 shots to improve to 9-5-0. Kettles made 26 saves, dropping to 13-7-6 on the season.
Mississippi converted on 2-of-4 opportunities on the power play. Louisiana capitalized on 1-of-5 chances with the man advantage.
Mississippi continues its six-game road trip on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. CT at Estero, Florida. Listen live on the Sea Wolves flagship radio station 92.5 FM.
The Sea Wolves Faceoff Against Kids' Cancer at the next home game on Sunday at 5:05 p.m. as against the Pensacola Ice Pilots at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum. Purchase your commemorative T-shirt for $15. The T-shirt gets you into the game. plus the postgame party and jersey auction at Grand Casino Biloxi.
Individual game tickets are available at all TicketMaster locations, the Mississippi Coast Coliseum box office and by calling 228-594-3707.
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