DULUTH, GA – The South Carolina Stingrays were defeated by the Atlanta Gladiators 5-4 on Tuesday night. Mitchell Gibson stopped 18 of 24 shots for the Stingrays.
Atlanta scored the game's first three goals to jump out to the 3-0 lead. Jackson Pierson scored off the rush to make it 1-0, Micah Miller doubled the Atlanta lead with a rebound goal on the power play, and Michael Marchesan made it 3-0 when he knocked in a centering feed from Zach Yoder.
Jonny Evans got the Rays on the board with 14 seconds remaining in the first period when he fired a shot from the slot that trickled through Atlanta goaltender Josh Boyko. Kevin O'Neil pulled the Stingrays within one when he drove the net and slipped a backhand through the five-hole of Boyko. The Gladiators restored their three-goal lead thanks to a power play goal by Brendan Hoffmann and a goal off the rush by Michael Marchesan.
Following Marchesan's second goal of the night, Stingrays Head Coach Brenden Kotyk called a timeout. Immediately after the timeout, Benton Maass scored off a one-timer from the right point. Austin Magera added a power-play goal before the end of the second period to pull the Stingrays within one.
South Carolina outshot Atlanta 9-5 in the final frame but couldn't come up with the equalizer. They fell 5-4. The Stingrays are back in action in Greenville this Friday for a 7:05 pm tilt against the Swamp Rabbits.
