Gladiators Bounce Back, Take Down Jacksonville 5–2 on the Road

The Atlanta Gladiators got back in the win column Friday night with a 5–2 victory over the Jacksonville Icemen at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, improving to 7–1 on the season. Atlanta opened its four-game road trip with a strong showing, spoiling Jacksonville’s home opener and moving to 3–0 on the road this year.

Coming off a tough 3–1 loss to Greenville on Wednesday morning, the Gladiators wasted no time making a statement. T.J. Semptimphelter got the start in goal for Atlanta, while Scott Ratzlaff started between the pipes for Jacksonville.

After a quiet start, the Gladiators broke through late in the first period. With 3:33 left in the frame, Cody Sylvester blasted home his first goal of the season on the power play, assisted by Chad Nychuk and Louis Boudon — just eleven seconds into the man advantage. Atlanta carried a 1–0 lead into the locker room, despite Jacksonville holding a slight edge in shots, 10–9.

The intensity ramped up in the second period, as both teams traded hits and penalties. Jacksonville tied the game at 1–1 on a 4-on-3 power play when Christopher Brown scored his fourth of the season. The tie didn’t last long — just 17 seconds later, Ryan Francis connected with Louis Boudon, who buried his third goal of the year to give Atlanta back the lead at 2–1. The Icemen struck again on the power play less than two minutes later to even things up at 2–2, but Atlanta answered once more — this time shorthanded.

With under two minutes left in the period, Louis Boudon delivered a highlight-reel behind-the-back pass to Alex Young, who went forehand to backhand to beat Ratzlaff and give the Gladiators a 3–2 lead heading into the final period.

Atlanta controlled the pace in the third. Isak Walther extended the lead to 4–2 just 2:33 into the period, and Alex Young sealed the deal with his second goal of the night late in the frame, making it a 5–2 final.

Semptimphelter was solid in net, stopping 19 of 21 shots for his fourth win of the season. The Gladiators went 1-for-3 on the power play and killed off three of five penalties, outshooting Jacksonville 24–21 overall.

Alex Young (2 goals) earned first-star honors, while Louis Boudon (1 goal, 2 assists) was named the game’s second star.

The Gladiators continue their road trip on Saturday night in Savannah as they face off against the Ghost Pirates at Enmarket Arena. Puck drop at 7 pm.