SWAMP RABBITS FALL TO RIVAL GLADIATORS MID-WEEK
By: Mark Shelley, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
GREENVILLE, SC – Two late goals by the Atlanta Gladiators paved the way for a win, as the Greenville Swamp Rabbits fell 5-3 on Wednesday night at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
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Before either team could settle into the game, Greenville’s Tanner Eberle tipped Bobby Russell’s goal line feed into the net just 26 seconds in for the 1-0 lead. After a back-and-forth middle portion of the period, the Gladiators responded at 18:55, as Jackson Pierson tipped the tying goal into the Greenville net.
Out of the intermission, Greenville recaptured its advantage as Jake Smith sniped his sixth of the season into the Atlanta net at 3:41. Again, Atlanta answered the Swamp Rabbits’ go-ahead goal, this time at 9:34 with Navrin Mutter’s second of the season. Less than a minute later, at 10:30, Atlanta’s Micah Miller stole the puck on the offensive end and scored the eighth of the season for Atlanta’s first lead.
In the third, Greenville answered Atlanta’s lead at 13:03, as Ethan Somoza scored an in-tight goal for his seventh of the season, tying the game at 3-3. Later, at 16:42, Mitch Walinski scored his second of the season for a 4-3 Atlanta lead. Cody Sylvester solidified the 5-3 final with the empty-net goal at 18:53.
W: Grigals
L: Bednard
With the loss, the Swamp Rabbits remained atop the Eastern Conference but fell to 19-7-0-0, while the Gladiators improved to 10-14-0-0.
The Swamp Rabbits remain at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Friday night as they welcome the Orlando Solar Bears for the first time at 7 p.m.
Swamp Rabbits Single-Game tickets, Full Season, and Half Season Tickets for the 2023-24 season are on sale now at SwampRabbits.com or by calling (864) 674-7825.
About the Greenville Swamp Rabbits …
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 the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s LA Kings and the AHL’s Ontario Reign. Greenville is an ECHL Premier AA Hockey League member.
