DULUTH, Ga. – The Atlanta Gladiators (19-21-3-2) were defeated by the Bloomington Bison (20-19-1-2) on Sunday afternoon, by a final score of 3-1, at Gas South Arena, in Duluth, Georgia.
Drew DeRidder got the start for the fourth straight game for the Gladiators, while Yaniv Perets, after a shutout on Friday, got the nod for Bloomington.
After an exhilarating boxing style bout between Dylan Carabia and Max Neill in the opening minutes of the game, Connor Galloway went off to the box for high-sticking, resulting in a power-play for Bloomington.
Sam Coatta (2nd), two games after scoring his first professional goal in North America, opened up the scoring in favor of the Bison, while on that aforementioned man-advantage.
At 12:50 of the second period, the 34-year-old forward, Sam Coatta, (3rd) lit the lamp for the second time in the game. Coatta tipped the puck into the net, after Eddie Matsushima took the initial shot.
Late in the middle frame, first-year pro Randy Hernandez (8th) got the Gladiators on the board, with a wicked slap shot from the wing. Connor Galloway and Derek Topatigh received the assists on the tally.
Early in the third period, Bison rookie Linus Hemstrom was able to pounce on a rebound, putting the biscuit in the basket.
The Gladiators opted to pull Drew DeRidder from his net in the waning moments of regulation time, in order to put an extra attacker on the ice. Though the Gladiators got some chances, Bloomington held on to win their first-ever season series with Atlanta.
Drew DeRidder made 17 saves on 20 shots in the loss for Atlanta, while Yaniv Perets, in the victory, turned aside 36 of 37 Gladiator shots.
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