11-27-24 – John Moncovich scored twice and the Knoxville ice Bears fell short to Fayetteville 3-1 at Crown Coliseum Wednesday night.

 

Knoxville has dropped two straight. The Marksmen snapped a two-game skid with the win.

 

Tyler Barrow broke a lengthy scoreless tie with a quick shot from the right side of the crease at 4:44 of the third period. Moncovich converted a power play less than two minutes later with a wrist shot from the left circle to make it 2-0.

 

Carson Vance brought Knoxville back to within a goal at 13:21 with a wrist shot from the high slot for his second goal of the year. Derek Osik slipped the puck to Mitch Atkins behind the Fayetteville net. Atkins maneuvered through the circle and dropped the puck back to Vance, who lifted a shot over Ryan Kenny, off the crossbar and into the net.

 

With Knoxville on the power play, an Ice Bears scoring chance went just wide of the net. Ryan Lieth took the puck for Fayetteville and lifted it ahead into the neutral zone. The puck came free for Moncovich, who skated free on a breakaway. Stephen Mundinger managed to get a piece of the shot attempt before it slipped past him and bounced across the goal line to make it 3-1 at 15:57.

 

Fayetteville’s Dalton Hunter missed the net from the right hash early in the first and Mundinger stopped Mason Emoff from right in front of the crease and later turned away Moncovich’s one-timer from the high slot. At the other end, Kenny saved a chance from the right circle by Eric Olson and gloved a look from the left wing by Dalton Skelly and the two teams went to the first intermission scoreless.

 

In the second period, Mundinger fought off a chance from the left circle while Kenny caught a Atkins redirect with his stick and turned away Mike Egan’s breakaway attempt. Brayden Stannard’s snap shot went wide of the net at the end of the second period and the game remained without a goal going into the third.

 

Mundinger stopped 20 shots for Knoxville. Kenny made 35 saves for the Marksmen.

 

The Ice Bears return home to face Evansville at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum on Friday. Fayetteville visits Roanoke on Friday.