WHEELING, West Virginia – Five different players scored for the visiting Cincinnati Cyclones (1-1 preseason) as they defeated the Wheeling Nailers (1-1 preseason) by a 5-3 final score at WesBanco Arena on Sunday evening.

Cincinnati’s offense roared to life in the opening period, jumping out to a 2-0 edge in the first 10 minutes of play. At 4:08, David Pacan sniped home his second goal of the preseason past Eric Hartzell (ND, 10 saves). Then, during a Wheeling power play, Cincinnati forward Stephan Vigier forced a turnover and roofed a shot over Hartzell’s shoulder to extend the Cyclones’ cushion. The visiting team held on to the two-goal lead after 20 minutes.

The Nailers finally got on the board via the power play in the second stanza when Zack Torquato beat Cyclones goaltender Rob Madore (ND, 19 saves) at 5:51. The Cyclones would answer back, though, just a few minutes later; at the 8:02 mark, Wade Megan deposited a goal during Cincinnati’s first man-advantage of the game to extend the edge to 3-1.

Just 46 seconds into the final frame, rookie defenseman Shayne Taker blasted home his first pro goal (albeit preseason) in his Cincinnati debut to make it a 4-1 game. However, as they did on Friday night, the Nailers clawed their way back into the contest. At 7:01, David Makowski found his way to the net and beat Joe Howe (W, 4 saves, 1-0 preseason) to cut the Wheeling deficit to a pair at 4-2. Just a few minutes later, at 10:20, Derek Army backhanded home his third goal in two games after a nice move to the net - making it a 4-3 tilt. As time wound down, the teams traded penalties to set up a four-on-four scenario. The Cyclones capitalized on the extra ice as Vigier set up Brian Nugent for a blast that beat Nailers goalie Jeff Wyer to push the Cincinnati lead to 5-3. Wheeling attempted another rally by pulling the goaltender, but it was to no avail as the Cyclones held on to take the two-goal triumph.

The Cyclones open the regular season on the road as they visit the Toledo Walleye on Saturday, October 18 at 7:15pm ET.

The countdown to the 2014-15 First Face-Off is nearly complete! The Cyclones will return for another season of hockey at U.S. Bank Arena on Saturday, October 25 when they play host to the Kalamazoo Wings at 7:30pm. Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook and Twitter (@CincyCyclones).