The Orlando Sharks traveled to California on a quest for their third win in a row, and their first road win of the season as they took on the Cougars in the Stockton Arena. As in the past two games, the Sharks drew first blood with forward Jorge Valle, coming off of a three-assist game, netting a two-point goal. Late in the first quarter the Sharks were charged with a pair of blue card penalties. They successfully killed the first power play and most of the second with outstanding defense by defenseman Gaston Pernia; however, the Cougars were able to score two points from a goal by defenseman Evan McNeley. At the end of one, the score was tied at 2.
The Cougars took the lead in the second quarter with a two-pointer by midfielder Craig Scheer. Sharks forward Chris Cerroni tied the game again late in the first half with an assist by midfielder Miki Djerisilo. With less than a minute to go, Sharks forward Dion Jagroo scored with an assist by defenseman Bill Sedgewick. The first half was marked by outstanding Sharks defense and another solid performance by goalkeeper Paul Nagy. At the end of the first half, the Sharks lead the Cougars 6 – 4.
Midway through the third quarter, the Cougars tied the score again with a goal from midfielder Eduardo Velez. A minute later, Orlando re-took the lead when Jorge Valle scored his second goal with an assist from Bill Sedgewick, his second. Two minutes later Valle scored his had trick on a Sharks power play. The goal was assisted by Chris Cerroni. The score after three was Orlando 10, California 6.
The fourth quarter began with Orlando on a power play and they capitalized quickly with a goal by midfielder Damien Pottinger and the second assist of the game by Miki Djerisilo. Sharks midfielder Eric Vasquez contributed to the lead with a two point goal; Djerisilo came through with his third assist. Moments later California was charged with a blue card penalty and the Sharks capitalized again. This time Vasquez got the assist and Djerisilo got the two-point score. With less than three minutes left in the game, California added a sixth attacker to a power play in an attempt to get some quick points. To their dismay, Vasquez shot a three-pointer into an empty Cougars net. Once again, Paul “Brick Wall” Nagy played a goalkeeper-of-the-week game bolstered by a solid defensive team effort. With the final score Orlando 19 California 6, the Sharks won their third game in a row, won their first road game, took their first series lead against an MISL opponent, and saw their highest offense output to date.
