RUSH LOSE CONSECUTIVE GAMES FOR FIRST TIME TO MAVERICKS

(RAPID CITY, SD) – Rushmore Plaza Civic Center played host to game two of the three game set between the Missouri Mavericks and the Rapid City Rush on Saturday night. The Mavericks, looking to close the gap towards first place, and the Rush, looking to avoid consecutive losses for the first time this season, picked up from where they left off, but once again, the Mavericks would get the best of their hosts. Despite a two goal second period, the Rush would fall to the Mavericks by a 4-3 score behind a power play goal early in the third period.

It wouldn’t take 17 minutes for either side to get on the board like last night, as scoring started early in this rematch. 1:47 into the game, Konrad Reeder would ignite the goal lamp, giving the Rush an early 1-0 lead over the Mavericks. The Mavericks would answer in a similar fashion from last night’s matchup, and knot the game up quickly. Mike Ramsay taking advantage of a rebound and a defensive breakdown in front of Rush rookie net-minder Keaton Hartigan to knot the game up at 1-1 with 15:36 left in the first. Ramsay was not done there, as he would add a second goal on a similar breakdown to give the Mavericks a 2-1 lead heading into the first intermission.

The Rush power play added another tally to their stats early in the second frame, tying the game for the second time in this back and forth affair. On a textbook passing play, Jesse Schultz and Konrad Reeder would find Winston Day Chief wide open on the back door to tie the game at 2-2 just 50 seconds into the second. Later in the period, Tristin Llewellyn would take the puck from Bobby Preece at the point, fire a weak shot towards Mavericks goaltender Shane Owen through a traffic screen and in to give the Rush a 3-2 lead with 15:32 left in the second. But the Mavericks would respond as they did last night, and would knot the game up moments later. Missouri’s Tyler Currier would lead a breakaway down the ice, but his shot would be stopped by Hartigan. The Mavericks would recover the rebound, and Anders Franzon would tie the game with 11:41 left in the middle frame, carrying a deadlock to the third.

The Mavericks would carry over roughly a minute and more of power play time to start the final frame, and would cash in on the man-advantage early. Not even a full minute into the third, Sebastien Thinel, trying to feed a centering pass, would get a deflection off of a Rush skater in front of the net and in, giving Missouri a 4-3 lead with almost a full period yet to play in the game. Despite a number of chances for the Rush late in the game, including their time on the ice with an extra attacker, the Rush would lose consecutive games for the first time this year, losing 4-3 to the Mavericks.

Keaton Hartigan would suffer his first loss as a professional in his fourth start (3-1-0) and stop 19 shots in the process. Despite the loss, Konrad Reeder and Jesse Schultz would extend their current point streaks to five games each, with Schultz also adding an assist streak of the same amount of time as well. The Rush lost consecutive games for the first time this season, and for the third time to the Mavericks, all coming at home. With the win, the Mavericks are now one point behind the Rush in the standings for first place, a position that the Rush have held by themselves since November 9th. Both teams are back in action for the final game of the three game in three night set at 7 PM MST in Rushmore Plaza Civic Center.

Other Rush News:

Season tickets for the 2013-14 season are available now by calling the Rush office at 716-7825.

Don’t forget to join Mark Binetti, “Voice of the Rush”, and Head Coach/GM Joe Ferras for “The Rush Hour with Coach Ferras”, presented by Miller Lite. The show returns to the air next year on Monday, January13th, and will be held at 6 PM at Boston’s Restaurant and Sports Bar. The show is broadcast on 100.3 The FOX, the official radio home of your Rapid City Rush.

Stay informed on Rush happenings through the official Rapid City Rush team website, www.RapidCityRush.com, and the Rapid City Rush mobile app, available on iTunes and Google Play.

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