Sparks Makes 36 Saves as Orlando Defeats Greenville, 2-0
October 19, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Swamp Rabbits News Release
Orlando, FL - The Greenville Road Warriors, proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, allowed three first period goals and could not solve goaltender Garrett Sparks, who made 36 saves, en route to a 3-0 loss to the Orlando Solar Bears at the Amway Center on Sunday.
With the loss, the Road Warriors fell to 0-2-0-0 on the season heading into next weekend's home opener against the South Carolina Stingrays. In addition, Mackenzie Skapski made 29 saves, but suffered the loss in his professional debut between the pipes.
For the second day in a row, Orlando jumped out to an early lead when Bryce Anelowski found Denver Manderson at the top of the left circle, who beat Skapski on a one-timer just 1:49 into the game.
Stefan Della Rovere extended the Solar Bears' lead at the 6:25 mark with his first goal of the season. From the top of the point, Gleason Fournier threw a shot on target that was knocked down by Skapski, but the puck trickled between his pads to Brad Ross, who sent it to Della Rovere for the goal.
Della Rovere continued his success at 15:22 of the opening frame and made it 3-0 with a stellar individual effort. From the right wall, the Orlando forward grabbed the puck and muscled his way to the doorstep, where he beat Skapski top shelf for the game's final tally.
Following four fights in the season opener last night, Sunday's contest included three more tilts. Those included: Mike Banwell vs. Tyler Biggs (19:58 of the first), Nick Schneider vs. Jacob Cepis (7:01 of the second) and Michael St. Croix vs. Ryan Rupert (12:15 of the second). Rupert was also accessed a misconduct for continuing altercation.
Greenville finished the game 0-for-5 on the power play, but 7-for-7 on the penalty kill. Consequently, the Road Warriors' penalty kill is now a perfect 12-for-12 on the season.
The Road Warriors outshot Orlando 36-32.
Greenville returns to action on Friday, October 24th with the home opener against the South Carolina Stingrays at 7:00 p.m. The Warriors are offering fans a special $10 Opening Night ticket and 2014-45 ticket plans start as low as $81! Call a Road Warriors Account Executive at 864-674-PUCK or visit GreenvilleRoadWarriors.com/tickets-overview.html to secure your Road Warriors tickets today!
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