For Immediate Release:
January 25, 2019
DAWGS FALL TO BULLS IN OVERTIME, 4-3
Jeff Jones scores twice in Roanoke loss
PELHAM, Ala. – Jeff Jones scored twice and Steve Mele had a pair of assists but the Rail Yard Dawgs surrendered a late lead and ultimately fell to the Birmingham Bulls in overtime, 4-3.
Roanoke got the scoring started in the second when Mele dug a puck out of the corner and fed Ben Bauer at the point. Bauer took a slap shot that Mavric Parks stopped but Jones crashed the net and knocked in the rebound to make it 1-0.
Jones and Mele would connect again later in the frame. Mele controlled the puck below the goal line and slid it to Jones in front who quickly worked it to his forehand and snapped a shot just under the crossbar and past Parks, giving the Dawgs a 2-0 advantage.
Birmingham answered and got on the board in the final minutes of the second. With a delayed penalty coming against the Dawgs and an extra attacker on, the Bulls worked the puck into the slot where Josh Harris ripped a shot on net. It went five hole on Brad Barone and Birmingham cut the Roanoke lead to 2-1.
The Bulls tied the game on a power play early in the third. They snapped the puck around and eventually hit Mike Davis for a wrister in the slot that he ripped past Barone, tying the game at two.
Roanoke took the lead back later in the third period when Colin Murray sprung Jordan Carvalho for a partial breakaway. Carvalho carried it in, deked to his backhand and slid it five hole on parks, giving the Dawgs a 3-2 lead.
That lead did not last for long however as Birmingham was granted another power play and quickly cashed in. Justin Larson hammered a one-timer from the point that beat a screened Barone and the game was tied at three.
Both teams had chances in a fast-paced overtime but it was the Bulls that cashed in with just over a minute remaining. They gained the zone with a two-on-one rush and Taylor Dickin fed Garret Schmitz for a one-timer that sailed in top shelf for the game-winning goal.
Jones scored twice and Mele’s two assists gave him 100 points in his time as a Rail Yard Dawg. Barone made 32 saves on 36 shots in the losing effort.
Roanoke moved to 16-15-1 while Birmingham improved to 21-9-2. The Dawgs will return to action on Saturday night again against the Bulls. Puck drop at the Pelham Civic Complex is scheduled for 7:00 PM CST and the pregame show on the Haley Toyota Rail Yard Dawgs Hockey Network begins at 6:45 PM CST.
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