WHEELING, West Virginia – Peter Merth potted a goal just 44 seconds into the opening period as his Wheeling Nailers (1-0 preseason) went on to defeat the Cincinnati Cyclones (0-1 preseason) by a 4-1 final score in front of 2,137 at WesBanco Arena on Friday night.

After a receiving a pass from teammate Andrew Hotham, Merth blasted a point-shot past Cyclones netminder Danny Taylor (L, 0-1 preseason, 9 saves on 11 shots) for the 1-0 Nailers lead in the opening minute. Then, at the 17:05 mark, Mikael Bedard tipped home an insurance marker to give Wheeling a 2-0 cushion after 20 minutes of play.

The Nailers tallied the lone goal of the middle frame, as Sean O’Malley redirected a Tim Priano shot behind Taylor at the 4:35 mark to extend Wheeling’s lead to 3-0 heading into the second intermission.

Cincinnati answered back in the third period as rookie Justin Vaive tipped a puck past Nailers goaltender Patrick Killeen (W, 1-0 preseason, 21 saves on 22 shots), pulling the Cyclones within a pair. However, in the final minutes, Zach Torquato buried an empty netter to seal the 4-1 victory the home team.

Bryan Hince also saw time in net for Cincinnati tonight, making eight saves on nine shots to earn a no decision.

Tomorrow night, the Cyclones will host the Nailers at U.S. Bank Arena in the preseason finale at 6:30pm. The game will be preceded by the Inaugural Power Play 5K Run/Walk presented by Powerade, which is scheduled to get underway at 5:00pm. For more information and tickets, visit CyclonesHockey.com.

The countdown to the 2011-12 regular season is underway! Secure your seats for Saturday, November 5 when the Cyclones welcome the Chicago Express to U.S. Bank Arena for the first time at 7:30pm. Contact a ticket representative today at 513.421.PUCK or log on to CyclonesHockey.com for more information. Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook and Twitter.

Click here for tonight's box score.