MARINERS HANG SEVEN GOALS ON NORFOLK IN ROUT

NORFOLK, VA – January 11, 2023 – Keltie Jeri-Leon and Alex Kile scored two goals apiece as the Mariners blasted the Norfolk Admirals 7-2 on Wednesday night at the Scope Arena. Seven Mariners enjoyed multi-point nights as the team extended its point streak to seven games with their third win in a row.

Mariners forward Alex Kile, who has been hitting a lot of milestones recently, achieved another on the first goal of Wednesday’s game. At 10:49 of the opening frame, Kile got loose in front of the Norfolk net and slid one around the pad of Admirals goalie Tomas Vomacka, taking a pass from Cam Askew. It was Kile’s 100th career point as a Mariner, becoming the first player to hit the century mark. Norfolk’s Mathieu Roy took a double-minor penalty for high-sticking late in the period, and the Mariners cashed in on the back half of the four minute power play. Keltie Jeri-Leon stuffed the puck to the net and just across the goal line at 18:03 to double the Mariners lead. Pat Shea picked up an assist on both first period goals. Maine outshot Norfolk 12-2 in the opening period.

The Mariners poured it on in the 2nd with four more goals. At 7:47, moments after a Mariners power play came to an end, Cam Askew made it 3-0 when he banged home a rebound off the pad of Michael Bullion, who replaced Vomacka after Maine’s second goal. A little over two minutes later, Jeri-Leon potted his second goal of the game, slamming home another rebound off the rush, produced by a Tim Doherty shot. It was 5-0 when Reid Stefanson’s wrister beat Bullion’s stick side at 14:31, and Kile’s toe-drag wrister from the right faceoff circle at 19:42 made it a half-dozen on the board.

Just 32 seconds into the third, the Fossier-Dohety-Jeri-Leon line capitalized again, with Fossier joining the goal parade with his seventh of the season. That would be all for the Mariners scored as Norfolk scored a pair of goals to get on the board against Michael DiPietro. Stephan Timofeyev netted his first ECHL goal on the power play at 2:36 and Danny Katic slid home his 9th of the season at 14:28, bringing the game to its 7-2 final score.

DiPietro improved to 5-1-0 on the season with 19 saves on 21 Admirals shots. Kile, Jeri-Leon, Fossier, Shea, Askew, Tim Doherty, and Nick Master all registered multi-point games.