For Immediate Release:
February 26, 2019
DAWGS JUMP ON, BURY STORM, 4-2
Mike Crowley nets first pro goal in Roanoke win
MOLINE, Il. – Mike Crowley netted his first professional goal and the Rail Yard Dawgs jumped out to a 4-0 lead before hanging on to beat the Quad City Storm, 4-2, Friday night at TaxSlayer Center. Jacob Caffrey made 29 saves for Roanoke who snapped a four-game winless streak with the victory.
The Rail Yard Dawgs opened the scoring just past the halfway point of the first period. Brian Rowland kept a clearing attempt in at the blue line and fired a wrist shot toward the net. It deflected off the stick of Zach Nieminen and into the net and the Dawgs jumped out to a 1-0 lead.
They’d add to that lead later in the period after Colin Murray won a footrace to negate a potential icing. He dug the puck out of the right-wing corner and fed it to the trailing Steve Mele in the slot. Mele played the puck between his legs and ripped a shot past Ryan Mulder to make it 2-0.
Roanoke kept up the attack in the second. Just under eight minutes in, Cal Miska ripped a wrist shot from the blue line that deflected off a Quad City defenseman and into the net, extending the lead to three. It added to that lead a few minutes later after Mac Jansen stick-handled around the defense to create a two-on-one rush. He slid a backhanded pass to Crowley who hammered home a one-timer for his first professional goal, pushing the lead to 4-0.
Quad City chipped away at the lead with a goal from John Scully late in the second and Al Graves at the midway point of the third, bringing themselves within two. The Storm ramped up pressure late in the final period and pulled their goaltender for the extra attacker but could not get anything further past Caffrey. Roanoke held on and dropped Quad City, 4-2.
Crowley finished with a goal and an assist, Rowland had two assists and Caffrey made 27 saves on 29 shots. The Dawgs snapped a four-game winless streak with the victory and improved to 21-19-4. Quad City’s record dropped to 13-25-4 in the loss.
The Rail Yard Dawgs will remain in the Quad Cities to take on the Storm again on Friday night. Puck drop at TaxSlayer Center is scheduled for 7:10 PM CST and the pregame show on the Haley Toyota Rail Yard Dawgs Hockey Network begins at 6:55 PM CST.
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