VERSUS 
GREENVILLE, SC – The Greenville Road Warriors were unable to complete a sweep of the Cincinnati Cyclones on Saturday night and fell by a score of 3-1. The loss dropped Greenville’s record to 40-22-4, but their magic number to clinch first in the South Division fell to one with South Carolina losing in regulation.
The first period went by with neither team being able to crack the scoreboard and the goalies stole the show. Chris Beckford-Tseu, who made his second straight start for the Road Warriors, turned aside all nine shots he faced in the frame. His counterpart, Brian Foster, was equal to the challenge and denied each of the six shots he faced. The Road Warriors picked up the first power play of the game when Brady Calla was whistled for kneeing, but Greenville only managed a pair of shots on goal. Cincinnati earned an advantage with 10 seconds left in the first when Brendan Connolly went off for slashing. That penalty came back to bit Greenville in the second.
As the Road Warriors tried to stem the Cyclones’ power play surge early in the second Marc-Olivier Vallerand took a delay of game minor 43 seconds into the frame when he lifted the puck over the glass from the Road Warriors’ defensive zone. The Cyclones took only six seconds to cash in a 5-on-3 goal as Brian O’Hanley ripped a slap shot past Beckford-Tseu from the left wing. Mathieu Aubin and Barret Ehgoetz worked together to set up O’Hanley’s seventh tally of the season. The lead could have easily grown as the Road Warriors were shorthanded for nine straight minutes beginning with Woody Klassen’s boarding major at 7:04. Beckford-Tseu, however, came through with a pair of sparkling glove saves to keep the Road Warriors within striking distance headed into the third.
It took 12 minutes of play and a a pair of failed power play chances, but the Road Warriors were finally able to feed a shot past Foster. Working low on the right wing, Brendan Connolly spied an open Shane Harper in the slot. Harper dangled around a Cyclones defender, deked Foster out of position, and lifted a shot under the cross bar for his 17th goal of the season. The game didn’t remain tied long, though, because Ehgoetz sizzled a wrist shot past Beckford-Tseu to the glove side after taking a drop pass from Dustin Sproat. The goal came just 1:15 after the Road Warriors had tied the game. Greenville’s best chance to knot the game again when Samson Mahbod went off for tripping with 2:40 to play. Beckford-Tseu was pulled for the extra attacker with about a minute remaining on the advantage, but the tying goal never came. Ehgoetz finished the scoring at 19:23 with an empty-net score.
Beckford-Tseu turned in 22 saves in suffering the loss. The Road Warriors were 0-for-4 on the power play and 4-for-5 on the penalty kill.
Mark your calendars! The Road Warriors return to home ice to battle the Reading Royals on Thursday, March 24 at 7:05 p.m. at the BI-LO Center. It will be another Dollar Drink Thursday with select draught beers and fountain drinks on sale for just $1! Group seating remains available for the game with discounts off of the box office price, preferred seating based on availability, and other great benefits. To book a group outing call a Road Warriors representative at 864-674-PUCK.
