(NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C.) – Jack Brackett got the Greenville Swamp Rabbits on the board 8:18 into the game, but the South Carolina Stingrays went on a 5-0 run shortly after to the end of the second period, taking a 5-2 win on Wednesday morning. The loss puts the Swamp Rabbits at six straight dating back to February 7^th at Idaho.

Brackett’s fifth marker of the season gave the Swamp Rabbits an early lead before the Stingrays potted two in response. At 8:18, Brackett stick lifted his attacker on the blue line and sprung on a breakaway up the left side, slinging a shot inside the far post of Stingrays goalie Seth Eisele to put the visitors up 1-0. About three and a half minutes later, Ben Hawerchuk got the Stingrays on the board when he circled around the Swamp Rabbits net and fired a puck that bounced off of Dean Loukus and past Swamp Rabbits net-minder Pierce Charleson, squaring the game at 1-1 with 8:12 to go in the first (Hawerchuk and Porter Schachle assisted). Simon Pinard put the Stingrays ahead and improved his point streak to a dozen straight games with 2:26 left in the second, faking a shot down the slot area past his defender followed by a finish past Charleson to give the Stingrays a 2-1 lead after one frame (Patrick Thomas and Patrick Guzzo assisted).

The Stingrays’ patented quick strike offense gave them separation early in the second, and allowed them to not look back. At 2:03 of the second, Stan Cooley received a Josh Wilkins pass started off a turnover, and batted the puck at his waistline past Charleson to give the Stingrays a 3-1 lead. He was followed 108 second later by Kaden Bohlsen, when Connor Moore took another turnover and found him in the slot to balloon the Swamp Rabbits deficit to 4-1 at 3:51. Josh Wilkins then snuck behind everyone in the Swamp Rabbits zone and backdoor tapped in a DJ King pass  with 5:52 remaining to give the Stingrays a fifth straight and a 5-1 lead. The run was eventually cut by the Swamp Rabbits power play, quickly going to work seconds into their first advantage. With 4:41 left in the second, Polino deflected a Josh Atkinson point shot from the front of the net past Eisele, ending the Stingrays stretch and closing the gap to 5-2. Atkinson’s assist extended his assist streak to 12 straight games, tying a franchise record for longest point streak by a defenseman in Swamp Rabbits/Road Warriors history. Both teams didn’t score in the third, giving the Stingrays the 5-2 win.

Pierce Charleson, playing in his fourth of the last five Swamp Rabbits games, stopped 26 of 31 shots faced (5-7-3-0).

The Swamp Rabbits come back home to start a three-game series against the Tulsa Oilers tomorrow night, February 19^th. Puck drop is slated for 7:05 p.m. at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

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About the Greenville Swamp Rabbits …
Acquired by Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) in 2020, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team have been providing family friendly, live entertainment at Bon Secours Wellness Arena since 2010. Formerly the Greenville Road Warriors, the Swamp Rabbits are the highest-level professional minor league franchise in South Carolina. The Swamp Rabbits are the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL's LA Kings and the AHL's Ontario Reign. Greenville is a member of the ECHL, Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League.