ESTERO, FL. – The Atlanta Gladiators (28-33-7-2) were defeated by the Florida Everblades (48-15-7-1) by a final score of 5-2 on Friday night at Hertz Arena in Estero, Florida.
Ethan Haider got the start in net for the Gladiators, while Will Cranley was the goaltender for the Everblades.
69 seconds into the first period, the Everblades got on the board quickly, as forward Alex Kile (17th) received a pass from beneath the goal line and slammed it home.
Late in the period, at 15:04, Everblades forward Colton Hargrove (12th) lit the lamp, increasing Florida's lead to two. The 32-year-old Hargrove took a cross-ice pass and wired it perfectly into the top corner of the net.
After Everblades forward Mike Posma went to the box in the closing seconds of the first, the Gladiators had an early power play opportunity to begin the second. Just 39 seconds into the frame, forward Jackson Pierson (10th) reached double-digit goals for the second consecutive season by beating Cranley low to the glove side.
At the halfway point of the contest, Florida forward Kyle Betts (13th) scored on a power-play opportunity, after Gladiator defensemen Brendan Datema got called for tripping.
In the final period, the Everblades scored quickly at 1:36, when forward Jesse Lansdell (13th) knocked in a pass from teammate Alex Kile.
At 11:35 of the final frame, Gladiator forward Ryan Francis (13th) took a pass from Jordan Frasca up the right wing side, and as he entered the attacking zone, lifted the puck upstairs past Cranley.
In the closing seconds of the game, after the Glads pulled Haider from his net, Andrew Fyten (4th) scored via the yawning cage to put the game away for his club.
In the loss for Atlanta, Ethan Haider saved 25 of 29 shots faced, while Will Cranley in the win for the Everblades stopped 23 of 25.
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