CALLER-TIMES INTERACTIVE: NEWS

Wednesday, Oct. 14, 1998

Home crowd cheers team's first goal in Igloo

By MARK BUTTON and JAVIER BECERRA
Staff Writer
After 1 1/2 years of preparation, the Corpus Christi IceRays players, staff members and fans had to wait another 1 1/2 periods to see what everyone was waiting for: The first IceRays goal.
   Although Austin won Memorial Coliseum's first-ever Western Professional Hockey League game, 4-3, the hometown crowd seemed to enjoy every minute of action.
   The 3,328 in attendance erupted into a roar when the IceRays finally found the Austin net.
   With 10:57 to play in the second period, Corpus Christi's Tyler Boucher put a stick on a backhand pass from Vadim Sharapov for the IceRays first-ever goal.
   Austin led 4-0 at the time of the goal, but Boucher's goal swung the game's momentum to Corpus Christi for the first time in the contest.
   Left wing Don Martin followed Boucher's goal in the second with a slap shot blast that beat Austin goalie Brian Elder. Martin gained control of the puck in the Austin zone, carried it over mid-ice and danced through the Austin defenders before unleashing the shot from about 15 feet.
   Martin's goal cut the Ice Bats lead to 4-2, which was the game's score at the conclusion of the second period.
   The IceRays kept the pressure on Austin in the third period, as Corpus Christi scored 6:26 into the final period. The IceRays had held possession the puck in the Austin zone for nearly a minute when right wing Regan Harper wrapped a pass around the Austin goal. The pass found center forward Mike Tomlinson, who stuck the puck in the net to make the score 4-3.
   

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