In front of a crowd of 7,296 for the team’s annual Pink In The Rink Night on Saturday at the North Charleston Coliseum, the Jacksonville Icemen (30-24-2-2) defeated the South Carolina Stingrays (26-27-5-0) by a final score of 3-1.
Forward Andrew Cherniwchan scored the lone goal for the Rays, his fifth tally in the club’s last three games. Goaltender Parker Milner started for the third consecutive day and made 20 saves in a losing effort.
The contest featured a total of 72 penalty minutes, including 10 different fighting majors.
Jacksonville got out to a quick start, taking a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Garrett Ladd at 1:28 and Wacey Rabbit at 6:52.
In the second, Cherniwchan kept his recent hot play going with his 25th goal of the season at 7:36. The tally cut the Jacksonville lead to 2-1 and came on a blistering shot that beat Tanner Jaillet with assists by defensemen Miles Liberati and Tim Davison.
But Justin Woods responded quickly at 8:19 of the second to bring the Icemen lead back to two goals at 3-1.
The Stingrays outshot Jacksonville 16-5 in the third but were unable to get a puck past Jaillet to get any closer on the scoreboard.
Jaillet finished the contest with 37 saves to earn the victory for the Icemen. The two teams held each other scoreless on the man-advantage with Jacksonville finishing at 0-for-2 on the power play, while the Stingrays were 0-for-4.
South Carolina heads north next week to battle the Maine Mariners for the first time on Friday and Saturday night before taking on Worcester Sunday afternoon. The Stingrays return to the North Charleston Coliseum on March 15 to take on the Norfolk Admirals at 7:05 p.m. Tickets are on sale now!
To bring your group to the game, call the Stingrays Front Office at 843-744-2248! For single game tickets, visit ticketmaster.com.