CROOP HITS MILESTONES IN 6-2 WIN OVER ZYDECO

COLUMBUS, GA - Jay Croop scored his 100th goal in his 300th game as the Columbus River Dragons battled past the Baton Rouge Zydeco 6-2 on Saturday night at the Columbus Civic Center.

Austin Daae opened the scoring just 1:56 into the game with an unusual unassisted goal. Daae was stopped on a breakaway by Zydeco goaltender William Lavalliere (37 saves) but the puck was kicked in by Zydeco defender Taylor Cutting to make it 1-0.

Columbus followed with a pair of goals just 11 seconds apart later in the period, starting with an Alex Storjohann power play marker at 7:04 followed by Carson Andreoli at even strength for a 3-0 lead.

From there, the game followed a familiar pattern where the Zydeco would cut the lead by a goal, and then Columbus would restore the gap. The back-and-forth ended in the third period when the River Dragons scored twice, including Croop’s milestone marker, for the 6-2 win.

With the win, the River Dragons extended their Tim Horton’s win streak to nine games and opened a 14 point lead over the Carolina Thunderbirds in the Continental Division.

Notes:

• Croop’s goal was the 100th of his professional and FPHL career

• Croop appeared in his 300th FPHL game

• Justin MacDonald extended his point scoring streak to 19 games with a pair of assists on the night. He now has 15 goals and 24 assists for 39 points in that stretch

• Tyler Roy improved to 6-0 with the River Dragons with 26 saves for the win

• Columbus is still undefeated at home in regulation at 12-0-1

The River Dragons return to action next Friday and Saturday night against the Mississippi Sea Wolves. Tickets are on sale for all remaining home games through the Civic Center Box Office and online at TicketMaster.com.