JELOVAC'S HAT TRICK HELPS UTICA CITY TROUNCE ROCHESTER

Utica, N.Y. – Utica City jumped out to a 5-0 lead and never looked back in an 11-3 win over the Rochester Lancers Sunday afternoon at the Adirondack Bank Center. Bo Jelovac netted a hat trick, while Liam Callahan scored twice and Nate Bourdeau, Cristhian Segura, Moises Gonzalez, Momo, Mauricio Salles and Tim Goldman also chipped in with one goal apiece. Matt Perrella got the start in net and made seven saves on 10 shots.

Utica wasted no time getting on the board when Bourdeau beat the keeper with a shot to the far post just 35 seconds into the game.

Momo doubled the lead 2:13 into the second quarter when Bo Jelovac found him inside the box and he buried a shot just under the crossbar. Callahan extended the lead to 3-0 when his long shot was deflected by a Rochester defender. Jelovac pushed the lead to 4-0 after Segura created a turnover in the box and the captain chipped a shot over the keeper on the power play. Jelovac struck again a minute and a half later after a blocked shot lead to a fast break and the captain punched in a shot to the far post.

Diego Mayanga scored on a penalty kick two minutes into the third quarter after Perrella was assessed a questionable blue card. Rafa Godoi cut Utica’s lead to 5-2 19 seconds later. David Wright continued the visitor’s scoring run when he beat Perrella back post with 10:35 to go in the third quarter. Segura answered back two and a half minutes later, dribbling through the Lancer defense and firing a shot off the post and in. Jelovac completed the hat trick after Domenico Vitale intercepted a pass and gave to the captain who went upper-90 for the goal. Salles continued the run with a power play goal, banging home a pass from Gonzalez on the short side.

Callahan notched his second of the game with a banger from the top of the box on the power play 1:15 into the fourth quarter. Gonzalez got on the board two minutes later, playing a pass from Perrella off the glass and burying a shot to the top corner. Goldman netted his first goal of the year with a diving header off a restart with 0.4 seconds to go in the game to cement the win.

Utica City is back in action this coming Thursday, February 13 on the road against the Mesquite Outlaws. Kickoff is at 8:35 p.m. ET. The game can be viewed on MASL.tv. The boys in blue return to home turf on Sunday, February 23. Kick-off is at 2pm and fans are encouraged to stay in their seats through halftime for a special Mascot Matchup featuring over 15 area mascots. Tickets can be purchased at www.empirestatetix.com or by calling the Box Office at 315-790-9070.

Scoring Summary

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