The Maryland Black Bears scored four unanswered goals and overcame a 2 – 0 deficit to defeat the visiting Rebels 4 – 2 to split the weekend series between the teams.
Despite winning two of the four games between them the past two weekends, the Rebels recorded four points while Maryland earned five, since the Rebels won Friday night’s game in a shootout. The Rebels now have an 11 – 14 record for 22 points.
The Rebels scored two first period powerplay goals to start the game. At 9:48 into the opening period, Maryland’s Ryder Niehhuis was called for cross-checking to give the Rebels the man advantage. Twenty-four seconds later, Greg Spitznagel gave the Rebels a 1 – 0 lead.
Luke deVries started the play at the top of the point and passed the biscuit over to Charles Panchisin on his right at the top of the near side faceoff circle. Panchisin made a cross-ice pass to Spitznagel at the far side faceoff circle who took a wrist shot that was deflected out front and went past Maryland’s netminder Colin Ronan for Spitznagel’s fifth goal of the season.
With 5:53 left in the first, Maryland’s Michael Urgo was called for interference to put the Rebels back on the powerplay. As the man advantage was almost expiring, Ryan Bunting gave the Rebels a 2 – 0 lead.
Shawn Ramsey skated from the near side hash marks inside the Maryland zone to the top of the slot and took a shot that was deflected out front. The puck bounced up and over Ronan and Bunting knocked it into the back of the net for his third goal of the season.
At 9:36 Maryland’s Ryder Nienhuis scored to cut the Rebels lead in half. After the Black Bears won the draw deep inside the Philadelphia zone, the puck went back to Luke Amell at the far side point. Amell took a clapper that was redirected by Nienhuis out front and past Rebels netminder Jack Fialkoff to make it a 2 – 1 game.
Julian Brown was called for cross-checking with 5:26 remaining in the middle stanza to give the Black Bears the man advantage. With time winding down on the powerplay, Maryland’s Luke Rubin tied the game at two. Black Bears forward Jesse Horacek took a clapper from the top of the point that was saved by Fialkoff, but the rebound came right out to Rubin who went around the fallen Rebel netminder and Rubin lifted the biscuit into the back of the net for his tenth goal of the season.
Maryland’s Riley Ruh’s first goal of the game at 6:08 into the third period gave the Black Bears a 3 – 2 lead. With less than twenty seconds remaining in Paddy Fortune’s slashing penalty, Horacek chipped the puck into the offensive zone from the near side point where it was retrieved by Brown at the bottom of his own faceoff circle. Rubin stripped Brown of the puck which went directed to Ruh who skated to the slot and backhanded the biscuit over Fialkoff.
Ruh scored an empty net goal with less than thirty seconds remaining in the contest to close out the scoring and make it 4 – 2.
Fialkoff stopped 26 of 29 shots while Ronan turned aside 16 of 18. Click here for the complete box score.
The Rebels now will play three games in the next seven days beginning Tuesday night at the Middletown Sports Complex when they take on the New Jersey Titans. Afterwards, they will travel on Thursday to begin a two-game series on Friday against the Maine Nordiques.
