Elmira narrowly edged by New Jersey in road tilt
MIDDLETOWN, N.J. – The Elmira Aviators (16-24-3-1) could not complete a comeback against the New Jersey Titans (23-16-5-1) falling 3-2 on the road Friday night.
New Jersey got a lead in the first period, and the Titans kept the Aviators chasing for most of the game.
Elmira had the chance to even the score in the middle period with its first and only power play. Jett Otwell and Bryce Terry combined to assist Clarence Beltz for a perfect shot to get Elmira on the board and snap an 0/15 streak on the power play.
Beltz is second on the Aviators in goals with 13 scores on the season.
The rest of the second period was cagey and filled with good goaltending. Elmira’s Wesley Jefferson-Swint II posted his second straight 40-plus save performance. Jefferson-Swint II notched 42 saves on 45 New Jersey shots.
Meanwhile, the Titans’ Austin McNicholas halted 30 of 32 Elmira shots in the game.
The Titans would break the deadlock late in the second period and take a one-goal lead into the final stanza.
The Aviators would see their deficit grow when the Titans scored on a long-distance shot through traffic to make it a 3-1 game.
Hope was slipping for the Aviators, but forward Jett Otwell reignited it with a snipe to the top corner to pull Elmira back within one. Otwell took heavy contact releasing his wrister, but battled through and continued to play hard for his teammates.
Time quickly became the enemy of the Aviators as minutes dripped off the clock. Goals were simply hard to come by Friday evening, but Elmira had one last push when it pulled the goalie.
The Aviators looked sharp during 6-on-5 play. They won faceoffs, moved the puck and looked poised to score. However, Elmira lacked that finishing touch to send the game to overtime.
The Aviators’ best chance was a scramble play to the side of the net where it looked like there was some net to shoot at. It simply was not Elmira’s night and the Titans defended well for the remaining seconds and took the game 3-2.
Elmira and New Jersey will battle it out again at the Middletown Sports Complex Saturday night at 7 p.m.
The game can also be streamed on NATV and listened to on Big Foot Country Legends.
Mac Young is the play-by-play voice of the Elmira Aviators. To contact him email [email protected].