BY: Mark Shelley, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
DULUTH, G.A. – A back-and-forth game was settled in the shootout, as the Greenville Swamp Rabbits fell to the Atlanta Gladiators 4-3 beyond regulation at Gas South Arena on Friday night.
Greenville took its first penalty of the game just beyond the midway point of the first period but would capitalize with a shorthanded goal by Ben Freeman at 14:45. Twenty-nine seconds later, the Gladiators tied the game with a power-play tally by Michael Pelech before taking the lead at 17:03 with a long snipe from Eric Neiley.
After Atlanta took a late first-period penalty, Jackson Leef tied the game at 2-2 with his third of the season for the Swamp Rabbits at 1:45. Greenville recaptured the lead with Brett Kemps fifth season at 10:09, before Atlanta tied the game at 3-3 with Neiley’s second tally from a scrum in front of the Greenville net.
After a scoreless third period, the Swamp Rabbits and the Gladiators headed to overtime to decide the two points. With neither team manifesting the winning goal, the two teams went to the shootout, where Tim Davison would put the Gladiators up in the second round before Derek Nesbitt scored to win the game as the third Atlanta shooter.
With the loss, the Swamp Rabbits fall to 9-12-3-3 while the Gladiators improve to 14-13-2-1 on the season.
Greenville remains on the road at Gas South Arena on Saturday night for the second consecutive meeting with the Gladiators at 7:30 P.M. before returning to Bon Secours Wellness Arena on
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