Wings dominate Swarm: 13-8

The Wings got back into the win column on Saturday night in Georgia as they took down the Swarm, 13-8. In a season where the Wings have struggled to put together a solid 60 minute performance on both sides of the ball, the Wings brought it all together and looked like a playoff team against the Swarm.

The Wings jumped out to a 3-0 lead early in the first with goals from Mitch Jones, Holden Cattoni, and Blaze Riorden. After Georgia scored two to cut the Wings lead to 1, Scott Dominey made in 4-2 before the end of the first. In the second, both teams scored thrice. Sam LeClair, Mitch Jones, and Joe Resetarits found the back of the net for the Wings, and the teams went into the locker room at halftime with the Wings leading 7-5.

The third quarter saw the Wings break open a 5 goal lead as Ben McIntosh, Blaze Riorden, and Mitch Jones all scored, while the defense held the Swarm scoreless in the third. Entering the fourth leading 10-5, the Wings offense didn’t slow down as they matched Georgia’s three fourth quarter goals to finish off a comfortable 5 goal victory, 13-8.

The Wings never trailed in Saturday’s game, and held their opponent to less than 10 goals for the fourth time this season. Mitch Jones bounced back after being held to just one point last week by leading both teams in scoring with 4 goals and 5 assists for 9 points. Joe Resetarits had 8 points (2G, 6A), Holden Cattoni had 6 (1G, 5A) and Ben McIntosh and Blaze Riorden both contributed 2 goals and 3 assists each. Sam LeClair had a goal and an assist, and Scott Dominey found the back of the net once while picking up 8 loose balls and causing 1 turnover. As always, Zach Higgins was huge in goal on Saturday, making 44 saves on 52 shots.

For the Swarm, Shayne Jackson led the way with 6 points (4G, 2A). Brett Dobson gave up 7 goals on 15 shots before being replaced by former Wings goalie Angus Goodleaf. Goodleaf gave up 6 goals on 26 shots in relief and hit with the loss. The Wings defense held Lyle Thompson to only two assists on the night, despite having 9 shots on goal.

The Wings are back in action next Saturday at home against the Vancouver Warriors. The Warriors currently sit tied for last in the league with a record of 4 and 9. The Wings sit in eleventh place and could see themselves jump back into a playoff spot with a win against the Warriors. Tickets are still available here.