COMETS FALL SHORT IN CHIHAUHUA

CHIHUAHUA, MEXICO - The depleted Kansas City Comets (13-3-2) fought hard but came up short against the back-to-back champion Chihuahua Savage as they suffered a 9-4 road defeat on Friday evening at Corner Sport Arena.

Aside from conceding four goals in the second quarter, the Comets matched up well with the Savage, losing the rest of the game 5-4. Among the long list of injured Comets included the absences of star forwards Rian Marques and Zach Reget, although they finally welcomed Lucas Sousa back into the lineup.

The Comets showed promising signs early with some big saves and defensive blocks before Nacho Flores put the visitors ahead 1-0, shooting directly on goal from a quick restart near midfield and catching Chihuahua off guard. The Savage equalized shortly after when Brayan Macias narrowly squeezed one across the line, a call that was upheld upon a referee-initiated video review.

The Comets answered back when Chihuahua goalkeeper Diego Reynoso got caught handling the ball outside the box. Sousa announced his return from injury by converting the ensuing shootout. The Savage tied it up for the second time when Jose Gilberto Lopez scored inside the final minute of the opening frame.

The second quarter was all Chihuahua. The hosts scored four straight with strikes from Luis Medrano, Roberto Escalante, Pedro Castaneda and Jaime Alejandro Romero to take a commanding 6-2 lead heading into the locker room.

The Comets managed to settle back into the game throughout the second half, starting when Stefan Mijatovic recorded his first point as a Comet with an assist on Nathan Durdle's goal. The Savage responded to score two more in the period.

In the fourth, Sousa struck again from a shootout after the Comets won their second challenge of the half to cut the deficit to 8-4. Again, Chihuahua responded with a well-struck goal from Jorge Rios.

"My boys fought hard," Comets coach Stefan Stokic said. "I'm proud of them. It was a difficult game with all the things that were going on, but the boys battled it out."

Flores led the game with five blocks, followed by Christian Anderaos' four rejections. The Comets also successfully killed off a 5 v 3 penalty situation in the second half after Erik Pereira and Chad Vandegriffe were sent to the penalty box.

Nicolau Neto took the loss, splitting time with Phillip Ejimadu. The goalkeeper tandem combined for 21 saves as Ejimadu stopped 77% of shots faced.

"We played well for all the quarters except the second," Stokic said. "That's kind of where we lost the game. But then the boys came out in the second half and battled."

"We showed our true colors in that second half. We were just missing some goals in that second half. But for me, personally, the boys played really good in the second half," Stokic said.

The Comets look forward to a home matchup on Sunday against the San Diego Sockers. Tickets for Sunday's game at Cable Dahmer Arena are available at kccomets.com/tickets. Fans also have the opportunity to purchase discounted season tickets for 2025-26 by visiting kccomets.com/seasontickets2526 before March 31.

1st – KC Flores 2:16; CUU Macias (Rios) 3:08; KC Sousa 3:53 SO; CUU Lopez (Castaneda) 14:16. Penalties – CUU Reynoso (bc - GK handball outside the box) 3:50.

2nd – CUU Medrano (Puentes) 0:42; CUU Escalante (Ruiz) 1:25; CUU Castaneda 6:53; CUU Romero (Ruiz) 12:07. Penalties – None.

3rd – KC Durdle (Mijatovic) 7:01; CUU Hernandez 9:24; CUU Lopez (Macias) 10:09. Penalties — CUU Lopez (bc - kicking) 0:57; CUU Lopez (yc - major penal penalty) 0:57; KC Pereira (bc - contact above the shoulder/elbow) 11:57; KC Vandegriffe (bc - kicking) 12:55.

4th – KC Sousa 8:50 SO; CUU Rios (Macias) 9:26. Penalties – CUU Valle (bc - deny goal scoring chance) 8:50.

Power Play – Comets 0/3, Chihuahua 0/2

Penalty Minutes – Comets 4, Chihuahua 11

Fouls – Comets 22, Chihuahua 23

Shots – Comets 22, Chihuahua 54

Blocks - Comets 24, Chihuahua 12