Stingrays Weekly Report - May 4

Two wins from a 3-game series in Orlando against the Solar Bears last week moved the South Carolina Stingrays ahead in their chase for a spot in the 2021 Kelly Cup Playoffs. SC outscored Orlando 15-9 in the series, including a season-high seven goals during a victory on Sunday. The Rays will continue their trip to the Sunshine State this week when they take on the Florida Everblades for another 3-game set on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

In 10 games against Florida this year SC has picked up two victories, with both coming on the road in Estero at Hertz Arena. In addition, the Rays have forced the Everblades into overtime three times, all of which resulted in a shootout. South Carolina has found recent success away from home, winning five of their last six and securing points in eight of their last nine.

STINGRAYS RECORD:23-19-9-3LAST WEEK: 2-1-0-0

FRIDAY: SOUTH CAROLINA STINGRAYS 6, ORLANDO SOLAR BEARS 2(Amway Center – Orlando, FL)Six different scorers and 33 saves from goaltender Alex Dubeau propelled the South Carolina Stingrays to their second straight road victory Friday night in a defeat of the Orlando Solar Bears by a score of 6-2 at the Amway Center. Forward Caleb Herbert led the way with a goal and two assists, while Brett Supinski picked up three assists, and both Matthew Weis (1g, 1a) and captain Andrew Cherniwchan (2a) each had multi-point nights.

SUNDAY: SOUTH CAROLINA STINGRAYS 7, ORLANDO SOLAR BEARS 4(Amway Center – Orlando, FL)Two days after equaling their best offensive output of the year, the South Carolina Stingrays won their third straight game and set a new high mark for the season by scoring seven times in a 7-4 victory over the Orlando Solar Bears on Sunday afternoon at the Amway Center. Three different SC forwards had multi-goal efforts in the contest, including Dan DeSalvo, Andrew Cherniwchan and Max Novak, while Cole Ully picked up assists on four of the tallies and goaltender Alex Dubeau earned his third straight win with 26 saves.

MONDAY: ORLANDO SOLAR BEARS 3, SOUTH CAROLINA STINGRAYS 2(Amway Center – Orlando, FL)A third period breakaway goal by Michael Joly broke a tie halfway through the third period and gave the Orlando Solar Bears a 3-2 decision Monday night, narrowly avoiding a sweep by the South Carolina Stingrays in the teams’ three-game series this week at the Amway Center. The Rays got goals from forwards Andrew Cherniwchan and Caleb Herbert in the second period, while goaltender Matt Jurusik got the start and turned aside 29 shots for SC in a losing effort.THIS WEEKWednesday, May 5 – at Florida Everblades, 7:30 p.m. (Hertz Arena)Friday, May 7 – at Florida Everblades, 7:30 p.m. (Hertz Arena)Saturday, May 8 – at Florida Everblades, 7 p.m. (Hertz Arena)STINGRAYS LEADERSGoals: 18 – Cole UllyAssists: 32 – Cole UllyPoints: 50 – Cole UllyPlus/Minus: Plus-9 – Tariq HammondPenalty Minutes: 47 – Cameron AskewShots On Goal: 126 – Cole UllyWins: 12 – Alex DubeauGoals Against Average: 2.81 – Alex DubeauSave Percentage: 0.924 – Matt Jurusik

CAPTAIN CHERNIWCHAN LEADING THE WAYCaptain Andrew Cherniwchan recorded multi-point games in all three contests against the Solar Bears last week, earning two assists on Friday before scoring twice Sunday and posting a goal and an assist on Monday. The leader is now third on the team in scoring with 34 points on the year, moving past the 30-point mark for the third consecutive season with SC. In his last 12 games, Cherniwchan has scored 16 points (6g, 10a) and has a current streak of assists in six straight home games that remains active as the longest current run in the league.

CONSISTENT PLAY CONTINUES FROM FLOREKForward Justin Florek is on another run for the Rays, scoring points in all three games last week in Orlando. The Marquette, Mich. native has now been on the scoresheet in nine of his last 10 appearances, dating back to April 14. Florek netted his 13th goal of the year Friday before posting a pair of assists on Sunday and an additional helper Monday night. At home, the attacker has scored points in seven straight games, the longest current run in the ECHL. In total, the veteran ranks fifth on the team with 30 points this season (13g, 17a).

ULLY REACHES 50-POINT PLATEAU WITH 4-ASSIST PERFORMANCEForward Cole Ully registered his third 4-point game of the season Sunday, earning assists on four of South Carolina’s goals. The Calgary, Alberta native leads the Stingrays with 50 points on 18 goals and 32 assists in 42 games played this season. His overall scoring number ranks 6th in the ECHL, while his assist total is also 6th-best in the league. Ully’s 1.19 points per game is also the highest in the ECHL this season.

CREATING MOORE OFFENSEDefender Connor Moore helped the team’s offense from the blue line last week, earning assists in all three of South Carolina’s contests in Orlando against the Solar Bears. The Cumming, Ga. native recorded two helpers Sunday in the team’s 7-4 win, his first career multi-point game. In addition, Moore had a positive plus-minus rating in all three games, finishing the series at +4. During 26 games in his rookie season, Moore has totaled seven assists and a +2 rating for South Carolina.—Tickets for all of the team’s upcoming 2020-21 home contests are on sale now via Ticketmaster.

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