EVANSVILLE, IN. – The Rail Yard Dawgs (9-6-1) struggled to settle in on Friday night, falling 6-2 to the Evansville Thunderbolts (8-11-3) at the Ford Center. Matt O’Dea and Carson Gallagher scored for the Dawgs, but Evansville’s Ty Taylor made 43 saves to slow down Roanoke’s recent hot streak.
Both teams were a bit sloppy in the first period, with most of the high-quality chances coming off of kicked or deflected passes that went against the grain of either team’s defensive shape. Roanoke did get an early power play when Evansville’s Myles Abbate hooked Owen McDade in the low slot during one of the best scoring chances for the Dawgs in the early action, but it was still a scoreless 0-0 game after 20 minutes.
The second period was a bit whacky – Roanoke hit the post and had four shots on goal in the first 60 seconds of the frame, then proceeded to watch Evansville completely take over the game for the next 10 minutes. Joey Berkopec’s shot from the right-wing circle skipped in at 3:04, and then Logan vande Meerakker added another just 40 seconds later to make it 2-0. At 6:39, Berkopec’s long-range blast from the center-point made it 3-0 for the hosts. A roughing penalty by Bryce Martin seemed to finally give the Dawgs a jolt, as they killed off the penalty and managed to work themselves back into the game. O’Dea combined for a takeaway with Nick Ford to start an odd-man rush, and Ford found O’Dea streaking into the slot. O’Dea’s nifty backhanded finish got the Dawgs on the board at 17:03, and they would quickly add another. Gallagher sniped a puck on a one-time shot following a great drop pass by Owen McDade, and, Gallagher, the former Thunderbolt, made it a 3-2 game at 18:35. The Dawgs even had five more shots on net in the final 70 seconds of the period, but they still trailed by one heading to the third period of action.
Evansville took hold of the game over the final 20 minutes. A Roanoke turnover deep in its own zone teed up Evansville rookie for an easy tuck to make it 4-2 at 1:42. A board battle was won by the Thunderbolts in behind the net a few shifts later, and Brendan Harrogate found Anthony Hora for a rocket of a shot from the left-wing circle at 4:45. A rebound goal by Harrogate at 17:40 would round out the scoring, as a four-game winning streak entering the game came to a halt for the Dawgs.
Roudebush saved 14-of-17 shots faced in net, while Roy stopped 8-of-11 in relief for Roanoke. Evansville went 0-for-1 on the power play, while Roanoke went 0-for-2 on its chances.
The Rail Yard Dawgs will return home on Saturday, December 21 against the Birmingham Bulls at Berglund Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 P.M. EST in the Star Cit. Single game tickets for the season are on sale now online and at Berglund Center box office.