DULUTH, Ga. � The Gwinnett Gladiators scored five unanswered goals, erasing Mississippi's 2-0 second period lead, downing the Sea Wolves, 5-2, in the first-ever meeting between the teams in front of 3,112 at The Arena at Gwinnett Center.
�It was a lackluster effort,� said Sea Wolves coach Bob Woods. �The guys didn�t show much emotion. If we do that tomorrow night at Columbia, we�re going to be in trouble.�
The start of the game was delayed 15 minutes, due to a malfunction with the lights.
After a scoreless first period, Mississippi�s (2-2-2) Louis Dumont took a pass from Patrick Rochon and opened the score, by firing a right circle shot past Garnett at the 1:57 mark of the second. It was Dumont�s first goal in a Sea Wolves� uniform.
At 6:25, Sea Wolves� Sergei Kuznetsov sent Dumont in all alone with a great lead pass. Dumont deposited his second of the night, by snapping a shot stick side.
Gwinnett (3-1-1) got on track at 10:10, as rookie defenseman Troy Milam unloaded with a right point shot, beating Matile on the 22nd Gladiators shot, for his first pro goal.
Gladiators received a fortunate bounce at the 16:40 mark, to tie the game at two. Sea Wolves� goaltender Matile tried to clear the puck from behind the net, but it went ricocheted off an errant skate, giving Anthony Aquino an easy goal into the open cage.
Gwinnett exploded in the third. Phil Lewandowski re-directed a centering pass from Aquino 43 seconds into the stanza, tallying his third goal of the campaign and eventual game-winner.
At 2:13, Mike Vigilante gave the Gladiators insurance, netting his first goal of the year, swatting it in from the side.
Gwinnett put the game out of reach at 7:06. Gladiators rookie blueliner Joe Bourne hammered a slap shot from the point, for his first pro goal.
The game then took on a physical tone, as Roger Maxwell squared off with Blue Bennefield and Jeff Hutchins dropped the gloves with Cam Brown.
Mississippi failed to convert on three chances with the man advantage, while Gwinnett went 1-for-6 on the power play. Gladiators outshot the Sea Wolves, 46-27.
Additional Notes: Earlier in the day, the Sea Wolves placed left wing Anthony Battaglia on the 7-day injured reserve and activated defenseman Chris Cava off the 7-day IR.
Mississippi continues its road trip tomorrow at 6:35 p.m. CT at Columbia, South Carolina. The marks the rematch of last year�s Southern Conference Final, won by Columbia, four games to two. Listen live on ESPN Radio WXBD-AM 1490 and across the internet, through the Sea Wolves web site at msseawolves.com.
The Sea Wolves next home game is at 7:35 p.m. on Friday, November 7 against the Louisiana IceGators. Promotions include 2-for-1 military, courtesy of Kessler Federal Credit Union and the first 2,000 fans will receive Thundersticks.
Individual game tickets, start at $9 for children and $11 for adults. Tickets are available at all TicketMaster locations, the Mississippi Coast Coliseum box office and by calling 228-594-3707.
Season seat packages, flex plans and discounted group tickets are still on sale by calling 228-275-WOLF.
--- Box Score ---
DATE - 10/29/03 Mississippi (2) at Gwinnett (5)
SCORE BY PERIODS
Mississippi 0 2 0--2
Gwinnett 0 2 3--5
FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: Rochon, MIS (Holding), 7:05. O'Rourke, MIS (Roughing), 13:41. Lewandowski, GWT (Slashing), 13:41. O'Rourke, MIS (Slashing), 17:01. Aquino, GWT (Slashing), 18:51.
SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, Mississippi-Dumont (Rochon; Lisabeth) 1:57. 2, Mississippi-Dumont (Kuznetsov; Hutchins) 6:25. 3, Gwinnett- Milam (Aquino; Dietrich) 10:10. 4, Gwinnett-Aquino (power play) (O'Connor; Vigilante) 16:40. Penalties: Cava, MIS (Tripping), 3:21. Bennefield, GWT (Board check), 11:15. Rochon, MIS (Elbowing), 16:17. Maxwell, MIS (Roughing), 17:43.
THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: 5, Gwinnett-Lewandowski (game winner) (Aquino; Dietrich) 0:43. 6, Gwinnett-Vigilante (Doell; Goodjohn) 2:13. 7, Gwinnett-Bourne (Dietrich) 12:53. Penalties: Lewandowski, GWT (High sticking), 10:12. Maxwell, MIS (Fighting, Major), 13:31. Bennefield, GWT (Fighting, Major), 13:31. Hutchins, MIS (Fighting, Major), 13:48. Brown, GWT (Fighting, Major), 13:48. Cava, MIS (Roughing), 14:18. Dagenais, GWT (Roughing), 14:18. Emmett, GWT (Cross checking), 15:47. Cava, MIS (Roughing), 18:17.
SHOTS ON GOAL
Mississippi 11 6 10--27
Gwinnett 17 16 13--46
Power Play Conversions: Mississippi - 0-of-3, Gwinnett - 1-of-6.
Goalies: Mississippi-Matile (46 shots, 41 saves). Gwinnett-Garnett (27 shots, 25 saves).
A: 3112. Referee: Bialota. Linesmen: Phillips; Finley.
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