Thunderbolts Secure Top 4 Spot with 3-1 Win over Pensacola
SPHL Evansville Thunderbolts

Thunderbolts Secure Top 4 Spot with 3-1 Win over Pensacola

Published on April 3, 2026 under SPHL (SPHL)
Evansville Thunderbolts News Release


Evansville, In.: For the first time in franchise history, the Thunderbolts will host two out of three games in the first round of playoffs, as they secured a Top 4 playoff spot with a 3-1 win over Pensacola on Friday night at Ford Center. The Thunderbolts' next home game at Ford Center will be on Saturday, April 4th against the Pensacola Ice Flyers at 7:00pm CT.

Evansville wasted no time out of the gate, with Jordan Simoneau scoring off a setup from behind the net to give the Thunderbolts a 1-0 lead only 1:33 into the game, assisted by Tyson Gilmour and Cameron MacPhee. In the second period, the Thunderbolts again scored the lone goal, with Derek Contessa deflecting a Caleb Huffman shot past Ice Flyers goaltender Christian Propp at the 10:37 mark, also assisted by Will van der Veen to extend Evansville's lead to 2-0. 10:39 into the third period, Pensacola broke the shutout as Ethan Price scored on a rush to the net to cut Evansville's lead to 2-1. Before Propp could be pulled, Evansville got the insurance goal back at 18:11 as Aaron Huffnagle powered past three Ice Flyers and poked a shot over Propp to make it 3-1, the assist by Anthony Mollica. Evansville's defense held firm the rest of the way to secure the Thunderbolts' 30th win of the season, Evansville's second-ever 30+ win season, preceded by 2022-23 when Evansville won 32 times. Evansville remains tied with Roanoke for third place, the Rail Yard Dawgs holding the tiebreaker advantage, and one point behind Huntsville in second place, therefore the Thunderbolts still hold the possibility of moving up to as high as second pending Saturday's games in Peoria and Quad City, and if Evansville wins once more against Pensacola.

Simoneau, Contessa, and Huffnagle each scored one goal, while Kristian Stead finished with 17 saves on 18 shots on goal for his 22nd goal of the season. The Thunderbolts and Ice Flyers meet once final time this regular season on Saturday, April 4th at Ford Center, with Evansville winning the regular season series 3-0.

Season tickets for the 2026-27 season are on sale now. Individual game tickets and group packages are on sale for the remainder of this 2025-26 season. Call 812-422-BOLT (2658) or visit our website (www.evansvillethunderbolts.com) for details.

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