ASHLAND, Va. (AP) _ Authorities combed the woods and parking lot behind a steakhouse trying to find evidence that may link the shooting of 37-year-old man to the sniper attacks that have claimed nine lives in the Washington area.

The man was shot once in the stomach after exiting a Ponderosa restaurant Saturday shortly before 8 p.m., authorities said. He was in critical condition after undergoing surgery at MCV Hospital in Richmond, but hospital spokeswoman Pam Lepley said his vital signs were stable.

Lepley said the man was in surgery for three hours Saturday night, and may require more surgery. Authorities said doctors were unable to remove the bullet _ a crucial piece of ballistics evidence that has been used by police to connect the 11 other shootings in the region.

Ashland Police Chief Frederic Pleasants Jr. said police would search the wooded area behind the restaurant again Sunday morning, though he said no evidence was found during searches conducted immediately following the shooting.

Some witnesses said they heard a shot coming from the woods, but nobody reported seeing the shooter.

If the shooting turns out to be related to the sniper shootings, it would be the first time the sniper has attacked on a weekend; it also would break the longest lull between shootings as the break in the spree had stretched into a fifth day.

It would be the 12th sniper shooting since they began Oct. 2; nine of the victims were killed. Before Monday's killing of FBI analyst Linda Franklin at a Fairfax County Home Depot store, the longest gap between shootings was three days.

It would also be the farthest south the sniper has traveled. The farthest police believe the sniper has strayed from the Washington area before has been Spotsylvania County, about 35 miles north of Ashland.

Early Sunday morning, a bloodhound was brought to the scene by police. The dog appeared to follow a scent across the street from the Ponderosa, then continued down Route 54 toward the town of Ashland. Police continued combing the area into the early hours of the morning.

Pleasants said state police shut down Interstate 95 immediately after the shooting was reported, as well as Route 54, where the Ponderosa is located, and Route 1, another major artery less than a quarter mile away.