Evansville, In.: In his debut between the pipes for the Thunderbolts, Talor Joseph stood tall with 28 saves on 30 shots to help Evansville rally and force overtime, where Scott Kirton scored to win the game for Evansville 3-2 over the Rivermen on Sunday afternoon at Ford Center. The Thunderbolts’ next home game will be on Friday, April 4th against the Birmingham Bulls at 7:05pm CT.
In the first period, Peoria grabbed the opening lead as Griffen Fox deflected a shot from Kylar Fenton to give the Rivermen a 1-0 lead at 13:26. Evansville levied a response late in the period, as Bronson Adams found some open ice inside the blue line and sniped home a shot to tie the game 1-1 at 19:20, assisted by Kirton and Nolan Dawson, the assist for Dawson being his first professional point. Following a scoreless second period, the Rivermen regained the lead 6:53 into the third period as Mike Gelatt scored on a power play chance. In the final minutes of regulation, Joseph was pulled for an extra attacker, and Evansville scored seconds later to tie the game 2-2 at 17:22, as Tyson Gilmour deflected a shot from Isaac Chapman, also assisted by Nolan McElhaney. In overtime, Gelatt took a major penalty for boarding Chapman, leading to an Evansville power play for the remainder of overtime. At 2:59, Kirton scored on a rebound from Myles Abbate and Gilmour to win the game for Evansville by a 3-2 score, simultaneously ending both Evansville’s 5-game losing streak as well as Peoria’s 5-game win streak.
Gilmour and Kirton each picked up a goal and assist, with Adams adding one goal. In goal, Talor Joseph finished with 28 saves on 30 shots on goal, becoming the first Thunderbolts goaltender to win in his debut since Sean Kuhn on November 3, 2023, against the Macon Mayhem. The Thunderbolts and Rivermen do not meet again this regular season but could meet in the first round of the President’s Cup Playoffs, with Peoria winning the regular season series 8-4.
