GREENVILLE, SC – Despite a highlight reel save, late in overtime, by Michael McNiven, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits fell 2-1 to the Jacksonville Icemen at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Thursday night.
GAME SHEET: Click here
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | OT | Final | |
| GVL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| JAX | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
In the first meeting of the season between the two sides, the Icemen wasted little time jumping onto the scoreboard, as Cristiano DiGiacinto scored just 28 seconds into the game for his forst of the season. After the teams settled into the flow of play, the Swamp Rabbits equalized with Dallas Gerads' first of the season at the 15:19 mark, as the puck bounced into the net off of Jacksonville goaltender Charles Williams. In a chippy second period, Greenville goaltender Michael McNiven stopped made his share of saves as the two sides remained tied after 40 minutes. In the third, both goaltenders made game-saving plays, include a number of stops by Williams to keep Greenville off the board on a five-minute power-play after Jacksonville's Luke Lynch was ejected for spearing. With the shots in favor of Greenville, 32-25, and the score tied at 1-1, the two sides earned a point after regulation.In overtime, McNiven prolonged the three-on-three with a backside robbery of an Icemen's two-on-one situation. Later in the extra frame, the Swamp Rabbits took a penalty and paid the price, as Louka Henault scored the power-play winner for the Icemen.With the loss, the Swamp Rabbits fall to 3-3-2-0 while the Icemen improve to 4-4-0-0.The Swamp Rabbits remain at home on Saturday and Sunday for a pair of games against the reigning Kelly Cup Champions, the Florida Everblades. Saturday's game begins at 7:05 p.m., while Sunday's gets underway at 3:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at SwampRabbits.com or at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena Box Office.
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