Saturday, December 31, 2011
MILWAUKEE, Wisc. – The Milwaukee Wave and Baltimore Blast faced each other for the first time since the Wave left 1st Mariner Arena last March with with the MISL Championship, but on Saturday afternoon the Blast handed the Wave their first loss of the season with 9-4 win, improving their road record to 7-0 and overall record to 8-3 in front of 5,304 fans at U.S. Cellular Arena.
The 74th meeting between the clubs since the rivalry began in the 1992-1993 season showed why both clubs are leading their respective divisions. The Wave got on the board first, Giuliano Oliviero scoring off an assist by Matt Stewart 3:40 into the contest, and Nick Perera scored shortly afterwards off a rebound of Jonathan Greenfield’s shot to give the Wave a 4-0 lead.
The Blast pulled one back later in the first quarter when Max Ferdinard cut the Wave’s lead to 4-2, and that was the way the game would remain until the final minute of the second quarter when Blast rookie J.T. Noone tied the game with 44 seconds remaining in the half.
The game was a physical one throughout, and in the second quarter blue cards were handed to the Wave’s Joe Hammes and the Blast’s Shaun David. The with nine seconds to play in the half Baltimore's Scott Buete received two penalties for tripping and unsportsmanlike conduct, but the Wave were unable to score on the powerplay that stretched into the third quarter.
Both team's defensive pressure held the game without a goal in the third quarter until there were under three minutes to play, when the Blast took their first lead of the game at 6-4 with a goal by Stephan DeRoux. The Blast added a 3-point goal by Pat Healey late in the fourth quarter while the Wave had the sixth attacker on looking for an equalizer, but it as their defense that was the key to the victory as they held the Wave scoreless for the final three quarters.
The Wave next play on Friday, January 6th at 7 p.m. at U.S. Cellular Arena when they host division rival the Missouri Comets. The Wave then are on the road for five games before returning home on January 29th when they face the Syracuse Silver Knights.