RGV Capsules: Muncy's hat trick leads Bees to needed win
HIDALGO – After Saturday night’s poor performance and about half of Sunday’s game, the thought of the Killer Bees listening to cheerful Christmas songs in the dressing room was laughable. So was the thought that center Daymen Rycroft’s replacement in the lineup would nab a hat trick as part of six consecutive goals.
Thanks to rookie Sean Muncy and their best period of the season, both happened Sunday night as the Bees won 7-3 win over Mississippi.
Trailing 3-1 midway through the second period and looking too much like they did during a 5-2 Saturday night to Corpus Christi, the Bees (13-10-3) answered with game’s final six goals, including five in the third. Muncy, centering the Bees’ top line in place of Rycroft who missed Sunday’s game with a left arm injury, scored all three of his goals in the final 20 minutes for the team’s first hat trick since Jesse Bennefield’s last March in Arizona.
Defenseman Nathan Ansell had two goals, including a shorthanded score at the 1:50 mark of the third to tie the game. Jesse Bennefield and Grant Goeckner-Zoeller each had four assists with Muncy centering their line instead of Rycroft.
Because of that performance, the unusual music choice somehow seemed fitting.
“We’re celebrating the win. Celebrating the holidays. Just having a good time,” said Muncy while “Alvin and the Chipmunks” blared on the sound system. “That was huge. I don’t know where the third period came from but that’s how we have to approach every period of every game. If we can be consistent, I think we can do that time and time again.”
Expecting six consecutive goals every night might be a bit much, but the Bees gave coach Chris Brooks the effort he’s been asking for all season. Instead of wilting when down by two, they responded at the 13:37 mark of the second by cutting the Mississippi (12-12-2) lead to 1 at 3-2 when Joel Irving won a battle in front of the net and tapped in a power play goal.
That goal started the Bees on their way to one of their most impressive victories of the season. And based on the two wins in their last eight games and the poor performance on Saturday, possibly their most important.
“I love the guys we have in that locker room. I love the dynamics of our team,” Brooks said. “You can see tonight with the dynamics what we can do. It’s just a matter of getting it out of everybody on a consistent basis.”
The next time the Bees play is Saturday at Amarillo. If they had lost Sunday night, chances are the holiday wouldn’t have been quite as enjoyable for the Bees.
The music certainly would have been different as well, and they can thank Muncy and their best effort for the change.
“That’s a huge win. It shows the character,” Bennefield said. “We were down after the second. To come out with a spark under our butt and get the win it’s great, especially going into Christmas.”
Brian Sandalow covers the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4436 or via e-mail at bsandalow@themonitor.com
Basketball
Vipers play host to Reno tonight
HIDALGO - The Rio Grande Valley Vipers will try to snap a two-game losing streak when they play host to Reno at 7:30 tonight at Dodge Arena. The Vipers (6-3) had franchise-record tying six-game winning streak before dropping a pair of games at Tulsa Friday and Saturday. Mike Harris, who scored a career-high 35 points on Saturday, is third in the NBA D-League with a 26.2-point average. The Vipers are one-half game behind Utah (6-2) in the D-League’s Western Conference standings. Reno is 4-4.
-- VFN Services
