Bouncing back to friendly ice after visiting Amarillo last weekend, the Topeka RoadRunners crossed sticks with the Bulls for the first of two games on Friday night. Despite a lot of physical play by the home team, the Runners were unable to penetrate the Bulls defense for much of the night in a 5-1 loss.
A slow developing first period was disrupted by a Charlie Singerhouse goal at 8:35, assisted by George Mika and Jeff Solow, helping Amarillo draw first blood 1-0. Less than five minutes later, after the Runners were penalized for having too many men on the ice, Luke Edgerton took a puck off his back and tapped it into the net for a power play score that stretched the Bulls lead to two.
Things got worse from there in the second period as Steven Ipri, assisted by Edgerton, Fired home another netter for Amarillo making it 3-0 heading into the third frame. Phil Fromberger and George Mika would combine for a pair of goals in the final period to put the game out of reach. However, the Runners denied the Bulls a shutout with a Peyton Frantti score at 13:09 (assisted by Matt Barnes and John DeRoche) to end the game 5-1.
The RoadRunners and Bulls tangle again Saturday night at Landon Arena on Teddy Bear Toss Night. Fans are encouraged to bring a new or lightly used teddy bear to the game and throw it onto the ice after the Runners score their first goal. The bears will be collected by a Sharp Honda truck and delivered to the Topeka Rescue Mission and Helping Hands Humane Society. For more information on tickets, call 785-286-7825 or visit the Expocentre Box Office.