BY: Matt Trust, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
Greenville, SC – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits scored a 3-2 victory over the Jacksonville Icemen on Sunday afternoon at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Ben Finkelstein recorded two assists, Frank DiChiara tallied his first as a Swamp Rabbit, and Jacob Ingham stopped 24 shots to snap Jacksonville’s winning streak at five games.
Late in the first period, the Swamp Rabbits struck first courtesy of their captain. Joey Haddad buried the rebound of a Samuel Jardine shot at 19:27 to provide Greenville a 1-0 advantage at the first intermission. Shots through 20 minutes were 8-4 Rabbits.
After intermission, Greenville tallied twice more to open a 3-0 cushion. Liam Pecararo tight roped with the puck in the offensive zone and feathered a perfect pass across to an open Frank DiChiara on the backdoor. DiChiara buried his second goal of the campaign and first with Greenville at 7:30.
#RABBITSRISING#
Alec Rauhauser blasted home his second goal of the campaign from the left face-off circle at 13:30. Shots after 40 minutes were 16-11 Greenville.
Down 3-0 in the third period, Jacksonville began their comeback attempt. Christopher Brown scored from the low-slot, five-hole on Jacob Ingham at 14:31 to cut his team’s deficit to 3-1. Jacksonville pulled goaltender Charles Moyse to force a 6-on-4 advantage before Pascal Aquin set up an open Brown on the power play.
Mike Szmatula closed the gap to 3-2 at 19:30 after burying a loose puck sitting in the blue paint. Jacksonville fired 15 shots on Ingham during the third period, but Ingham stood tall in the final seconds to protect a 3-2 victory.
The Greenville Swamp Rabbits return to action on Wednesday, May 5, to conclude four consecutive tilts versus Jacksonville. Both teams will rematch at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. The puck drop is slated for 7 p.m.
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ABOUT US
Acquired by Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) in 2020, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team has provided 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 proud affiliates of the NHL’s Florida Panthers and AHL’s Charlotte Checkers. Greenville is a member of the ECHL, Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League. Since the conclusion of the 2019-20 NHL Season, 678 former ECHL players have debuted in the NHL. Nine former Greenville Road Warriors/Swamp Rabbits have later made their NHL debut.
