VERSUS 
Greenville, SC – The Greenville Road Warriors distanced themselves against the rest of the Eastern Conference with a 5-2 victory over the Reading Royals on Thursday night. Ten different Road Warrior players recorded points and they received some solid goal-tending by Chris Beckford-Tseu to extend their overall record to 42-22-4.
The Road Warriors and Royals opened tonight’s contest in a battle for the overall number one seed in the Eastern Conference and home ice during the playoffs. The Road Warriors got off to a rocky start after a minor penalty to Sean Berkstresser less than a minute into the period gave the Royals the skater advantage. Reading struck quickly with Ryan Cruthers sending a shot from the high slot that snuck by Road Warriors goal Chris Beckford-Tseu for the first goal of the game 1:35 in. Yannick Riendeau and Olivier Labelle each picked up an assist on the goal. The Road Warriors tied the score at 12:01 on Jimmy Kilpatrick’s 18th goal of the season. Matt Schepke rushed the net and had his initial shot blocked by Royals goaltender Daren Machesney, but he was unable to maintain possession of the puck after his own man crashed into him and the rebound opportunity fell into Kilpatrick’s lap. Schepke and Justin Bowers recorded assists on the goal. A little over two minutes later the Road Warriors grabbed the lead after Marc-Olivier Vallerand beat Machesney with a one-timer from close range. Vallerand’s 26th goal leads the Road Warriors and Bowers and Schepke each recorded their second assists of the night. Reading received a late 5-on-3 advantage with penalties to Kilpatrick and T.J. Reynolds, but was unable to take advantage of the extra attackers. The Road Warriors killed the second power play opportunity in that set to close out the first period with a 2-1 lead. Greenville doubled up Reading 18-9 on shots and went 1-for-2 on the power play.
Greenville wasted little time in the second period to extend the lead. Chris Chappell slapped a shot off the right post past Machesney after a Royals turnover in their own end. Chappell’s goal came at 2:25 and was his eighth of the season. Wes Cunningham picked up an assist on the goal. The Road Warriors received a late power play chance on a delay of game minor to Reading’s Sam Roberts. The penalty went by the wayside, though and Reading capitalized on the momentum of the successful kill. Reading forward Robert Slaney gathered a rebound from a point shot and beat Beckford-Tseu at 17:44 to trim Greenville’s lead to one. Mike Little recorded an assist on the goal and the period ended with a 3-2 Greenville lead. The Road Warriors out-shot the Royals 15-11, but were 0-for-2 on the power play.
The Road Warriors appeared to have struck early again at the start of the third period, but an apparent goal was waved off after the referee determined that the goal was punched in with a glove. The Road Warriors were not deterred and extended their lead shortly after the no goal on Brendan Connolly’s 20th goal of the season. Shane Harper and Reynolds each picked up assists on the goal at 1:47. The Road Warriors defense stiffened for the remainder of the period and shut down the Royals’ high-powered offense and their only power play chance in the third. Reading sought a late comeback effort and pulled the goaltender with two minutes remaining, but managed only two shots on goal with the extra attacker. Berkstresser scored an empty-netter for Greenville with just over a minute left to seal the victory. Greenville out-shot Reading 12-10 in the frame and went 1-for-1 on the penalty kill.
Beckford-Tseu turned away 28 of 30 shots en route to his third win this season as a member of the Road Warriors. Greenville was 1-for-6 on the power play and 3-for-4 on the penalty kill.
Mark your calendars! The Road Warriors return to home ice to battle the Gwinnett Gladiators on Thursday, March 31 at 7:05 p.m. at the BI-LO Center. It will be another Dollar Drink Thursday with select draught betters 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.
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