Tied at one entering the third period, the South Carolina Stingrays scored twice in the first three minutes and added a late empty-net goal to defeat the Atlanta Gladiators 4-1 on Friday night at the North Charleston Coliseum in front of 4,319 fans.
Atlanta (35-16-2-1) threatened early in the first period, hitting the iron multiple times in the opening ten minutes before finally breaking through with under nine minutes remaining. Joey Cipollone scored to give the visitors a 1-0 lead, and the Gladiators carried that advantage into the second period.
After a quiet first period, South Carolina (36-18-1-0) found its footing in the middle frame. Just past the six-minute mark, Stan Cooley dropped the gloves, sparking the Stingrays as they began generating chances and drew a penalty against the Gladiators.
South Carolina capitalized on the power play when Kyler Kupka found Josh Wilkins cutting to the back post, where Wilkins tapped home his 19th goal of the season to tie the game at one with 3:35 remaining in the period.
In the third period, the Stingrays pounced off the opening faceoff, forcing a turnover deep in the attacking zone. Ben Hawerchuk then fed Dean Loukus a centering pass in the slot, and Loukus snapped home the go-ahead goal just 19 seconds into the frame.
Atlanta went to the power play shortly after Loukus’ goal, but South Carolina struck while shorthanded. Kupka wired home a shorthanded tally 2:36 into the third period to double the Stingrays’ advantage to 3-1.
The Gladiators pressed for a response over the final 17 minutes, but Ty Taylor, who replaced Seth Eisele in the second period, turned aside every Atlanta chance. With the Gladiators’ net empty in the final minute, Jordan Klimek scored to seal the 4-1 victory and record his 100th professional point.
Taylor stopped all 14 shots he faced to earn his fifth win of the season. Kupka and Loukus each recorded a goal and an assist for multi-point nights. With the victory, the Stingrays clinched the regular-season series over the Gladiators with one meeting remaining between the clubs.