RoughRiders crushed at Green Bay, 10-1

GREEN BAY, Wis. - Well, if you're going to lose, you might as well lose big.

There was no heartbreak Saturday night for the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, just a shellacking at the hands of the Green Bay Gamblers, 10-1, at Resch Center.

Green Bay scored four times in each of the first two periods, getting two goals apiece from Sam Saliba and former Rider Joey Marooney. At one point in the second period, the Gamblers had four shots on goal, all of them going into the net.

Cedar Rapids' lone goal was scored by Matt Filipe 11:44 into the first. That made it a 2-1 game.

Ben Blacker took the loss in net for the Riders, allowing five goals in 44 minutes. Backup Zack LaRocque gave up four goals in 16 minutes.

Green Bay leaped ahead of the RoughRiders (17-8-2-1, 37) by one standings point in the USHL's Eastern Conference, though Cedar Rapids has two games in hand. The Riders went 1-1-1 in a rugged three-games-in-four-nights stretch, beating Bloomington and losing in a shootout Thursday night at Waterloo.

They play three games in three nights this coming week, hosting Sioux City on Thursday night and Team USA on Saturday, sliding a road game at Dubuque in there Friday night.