Hoping to sharpen their teeth on our neighbors to the south and build momentum as they started their two game series with Monterrey, the Sharks began the first quarter of play battling for ball control against a sluggish La Raza team. Though they maintained possession the majority of the quarter, Orlando had trouble pulling the trigger until ten and a half minutes into the game when they were able to score on a crisp, clean pass and shoot goal provided by forward Mauricio Ruiz. Defender Bill Sedgewick was awarded the assist and Orlando took the lead after one quarter of play, 2-0.
After spending a quarter of play scoreless in the Shark tank, the Monterrey La Raza awoke with a vengeance. Forward Dino Delevski led the onslaught, scoring first after five minutes of play to tie the score at two points. Two minutes later, Delevski powered a three point shot into the corner of the net to make it 5-2 in favor of Monterrey. Not satisfied, Delevski would complete his hat trick with five minutes left in the half, adding to his reputation as one of the league’s leading scorers. The half would eventually end with the score 9-2 in favor of Monterrey after a power play goal by forward Byron Alverez.
The third quarter was one of missed opportunities for the Sharks as they saw two power plays extinguished by La Raza. Monterrey scored first on a two-point goal by midfielder Ivan Medina after five minutes of play, extending the Monterrey lead to nine points. Orlando was able to answer via a nifty rebound assist and goal from defender JP Rodriguez to midfielder Miki Djerisilo with four minutes left. After three quarters of play Monterrey led 11-4.
The physicality was noticeably more intense as the fourth quarter got under way. The Sharks took pop shots on the Monterrey goaltender, pressuring but unable to materialize on their efforts. After ridding themselves of a Monterrey power play, Orlando brought in JP Rodriguez as the sixth attacker with two and a half minutes remaining. The catalyst was enough to motivate midfielder Miki Djerisilo to score his second goal of the game aided by an assist from forward Chris Cerroni with a minute and a half remaining. The game would end with the final score, Monterrey 11, Orlando 6.
This was a game not accurately depicted by the final score. Save for the second quarter, Orlando exhibited excellent ball control and defense. If only the Sharks had been more assertive when it counted the outcome would have been different. Look for coach Jake Dancy to make some adjustments so that Orlando can take one of two from La Raza in Monterrey next week.
