Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs shut out in first franchise game

6,188 attend first game in franchise history

ROANOKE (WSLS 10) - The Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs fell in the first game in franchise history on Friday night.

The Dawgs lost to the Knoxville Ice Bears, 2-0, at the Berglund Center.

The two teams played in front of a sell-out crowd of 6,188.

The game included a 32-second fight between Roanoke’s Michael Turner and Knoxville’s Jake Rivera and the two teams went on to combine for 24 penalty minutes in the first.

Knoxville got on the board at the 12:29 mark in the third when Jake Rivera barreled down the right wing on a two-on-one break. Brandon Anderson stopped his initial shot but Rivera slid a rebound past Anderson for the game’s first goal.

The Ice Bears padded their advantage nearly three minutes later on a power play. Mark Pustin found Danny Cesarz on the left faceoff circle, who then fired a one-touch pass to Kyle McNeil. McNeil redirected the pass past Anderson and gave Knoxville a 2-0 lead at 9:38.

 

The Rail Yard Dawgs will now hit the road for Knoxville and the second half of a home and home set with the Ice Bears. Saturday’s puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 PM at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum. Roanoke’s next home game is against the Fayetteville FireAntz at 7:05 PM on Friday, November 4.