(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Jack Brackett put the Greenville Swamp Rabbits ahead going into the final period, and Josh Atkinson extended his assist streak for a ninth straight game, but the South Carolina Stingrays scored twice in 14 seconds in the third period to eventually escape with a 4-2 win on Friday night.

The Stingrays managed to tally the only goal of the first period, coming in the final minutes. With 108 seconds to play in the first, Connor Moore tight roped the Swamp Rabbits blue line and blasted a shot that snuck through traffic and slipped by Swamp Rabbits net-minder Mattias Sholl, giving the Stingrays a 1-0 lead (Simon Pinard and Lynden Breen assisted).

The Swamp Rabbits returned fire and then some in the second period, starting off with their smoking red-hot power play. At 6:36 on their second power play of the game, Kenta Isogai collected a tipped pass as he entered the zone and found Wade Murphy across on the right side. Murphy rifled a shot that passed through the five-hole of Stingrays goalie Seth Eisele, squaring the game at 1-1 (Isogai and Patrick Polino assisted). Just under 10 minutes later, Jack Brackett caught a piece of a Keaton Mastrodonato shot and tipped it by Eisele, giving the Swamp Rabbits their only lead of the game at 2-1 with 3:28 left in the second (Mastrodonato and Josh Atkinson assisted). With his assist on the goal, Atkinson extended his career-high assist streak to nine consecutive games.

The Stingrays used quick strike offense to overtake the Swamp Rabbits and steal the win. Patrick Guzzo buried an active bounce off the glass to tie the game at 2-2 with 7:01 left in regulation, and 14 seconds later, Stan Cooley fell down towards the far post and the puck bounced in off of him behind Sholl, giving South Carolina a 3-2 lead in the blink of an eye. Simon Pinard ended it with an empty-netter with 61 seconds remaining, pushing the Stingrays to a 4-2 win.

Mattias Sholl stopped 24 of 27 shots in suffering the loss (8-9-2-0).

The Swamp Rabbits rematch the Stingrays tomorrow, February 14^th, on the road. Puck drop at North Charleston Coliseum is slated for 6:05 p.m. EST.

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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.