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ILLINOIS WATER POLO |
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Wednesday - April 14, 2004 GAME RECAPS
Sandburg Holds Off Late Rally To Beat Redhawks By Aaron Brown
Orland Park, IL -- Sandburg held off a late rally to beat Naperville Central 6-5 on Wednesday night. Eagles' goalie Tommy Strode made nine saves in the final period, including two powerplay saves in the last minute to preserve the victory. Strode made nineteen total saves in the victory, which helped Sandburg improve to 18-1 on the season. Meanwhile, the loss was the first this year for the Redhawks (12-1-1).
Sandburg got on the board first when Jon Christensen hit a shot from the left wing on a pass from Brian Dommer. The Redhawks tied the score in the next minute, as Pat Leclair made a steal and fed Matt McNichols with a pass at two meters that he put into the back of the net to make it 1-1. Christensen put the Eagles back on top, making a steal and going down the left side for an unassisted goal. McNichols had a breakaway opportunity turned away by Strode, and Rob Murphy put Sandburg ahead 3-1 at the end of the period with a powerplay goal.
Naperville Central's Corey Stein made two big saves to keep the Redhawks in the game in the second quarter, but Jon Kryzminski was able to add a powerplay goal from the left wing to give Sandburg a 4-1 lead at halftime.
Brian Dommer's two meter shot to start the half was denied by Stein, and Kevin Bell cut the Eagles' lead in half with a sweep shot from two meters out to make it 4-2. Dommer scored two straight goals for Sandburg to push the advantage to 6-2, as he slammed home a shot from two meters, then followed that with a steal and unassisted breakaway goal. McNichols made a steal and scored with a backhand from two meters out to trim the lead to 6-3 moments later, and Derek Wilson scored on a rebound goal from four meters out to make it 6-4 with 2:57 remaining in the third period. McNichols got the Redhawks to within one with a backhand goal off a rebound, but Strode made two saves in the final minute of the period to keep the Eagles ahead 6-5.
Strode stepped up in the fourth quarter, making nine consecutive saves to stop the Redhawks chances of tying the game. Wilson's driving shot was denied in the first minute, and McNichols seven meter shot from the right side was deflected out of bounds. Strode then denied Mike Leclair from the right wing, and also stopped Bell's shot from the right side to keep the score 6-5. Wilson's seven meter shot was saved with 1:23 left to play, and Strode denied Wilson's powerplay shot from the left wing with 0:45 remaining. The Redhawks would have one last chance to score, as they drew an ejection with only 0:10 on the clock. But Strode denied Bell from outside of seven meters as the buzzer sounded, and Sandburg held on for the 6-5 victory.
Strode was the star for Sandburg, making nineteen total saves and nine in the last period. Christensen also helped the Eagles on both sides of the ball, as he scored twice and added eight steals and forced two turnovers. Dommer added two goals while Kryzminski and Murphy each had one. McNichols lead the Redhawks with three goals, while Wilson and Bell each had one goal each.
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