SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — The Sioux Falls Stampede were unable to rally back and defeat the Empire’s sinister agents (the Waterloo Black Hawks) on Star Wars Night, falling 5-3 at the PREMIER Center Saturday Night. It was a valiant effort, with Jedi Master Jack Reimann tallying his second goal of the weekend and Maddox Fleming putting up two assists, while Isak Posch stopped 29 of 34 shots between the pipes for the Rebellion.
After a slow start that had Waterloo outshooting Sioux Falls 15-5 after twenty minutes, the Herd found themselves down by two going into the second period. Jack Reimann would get Sioux Falls on the board 6:12 into the second after backhanding a pass from Sam Harris into the net for his sixth of the season and second goal of the weekend. Waterloo quickly answered back just 39 seconds later and tacked on another goal to end the period with a 4-1 lead over the Stampede. Waterloo outshot Sioux Falls 8-6 in the period.
Waterloo would add on to their lead just 1:36 into the third period off a goal by Ben Robertson, but Sioux Falls would begin to rally back halfway into the period. Clint Levens took a one-timer off a feed from Jaksen Panzer that zipped past the Waterloo netminder at 9:58 in the period for his ninth of the year. Michael LaStarza would net his 15th goal of the season to bring the Herd within two with just 3:25 remaining in regulation, tucking the puck underneath the pads of the Black Hawks netminder after taking a pass from Maddox Fleming. The Herd then pulled their goaltender for the extra attacker but were unable to come up with the goals necessary to tie the game up.
Sioux Falls was outshot by Waterloo 11-8 in the final frame and 34-19 in the game. They were 0-for-1 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.
The Herd return to the PREMIER Center next weekend to host Waterloo again on Friday night April 15, then Tri-City on Saturday. Tickets are still available on sfstampede.com/tickets. If you can’t make it out to the games, fans can tune into KELO News Talk 1320-AM, 105.1-FM, 107.9-FM, and KELO.com, or stream the action on HockeyTV.
