CINCINNATI,Ohio – It came down to the wire, but the South Carolina Stingrays (40-18-1-6) squeaked past the Cincinnati Cyclones (27-18-1-6) in a shootout by a 4-3 final score in front of 2,535 at U.S. Bank Arena on Wednesday night.

The Cyclones got on the board at 8:21 of the first period as Jack Downing sniped a shot right off of a face-off past Jeff Jakaitis (W, 10 saves, 23-7-1-1) to make it 1-0. Unfortunately, the Stingrays answered back moments later when Joe Devin stashed a rebound off the back-wall through Rob Madore (SOL, 28 saves, 12-17-1-6) to knot things at one. The teams would remain deadlocked after 20 minutes.

Cincinnati pulled back out in front just 2:58 into the middle stanza when Nick Huard beat Jakaitis through the legs with a low shot from the left side. After a period where there were just nine combined shots on goal, the Cyclones maintained their 2-1 edge.

The Cyclones earned a huge insurance goal just 3:59 gone in the final regulation period, as Joe Basaraba tucked in a rebound for his 10th goal of the season to make it a 3-1 tilt. Unfortunately, the Stingrays' penalty kill sparked a rally; during one of Cincinnati's two power plays on the night, Derek Deblois intercepted a puck, went all alone on a breakaway, and fired home a shorthanded goal at 11:09 to pull his team to within one. Then, with just over a minute remaining and the goaltender pulled, Rob Bellamy redirected home a play to the net and tied the game at three - sending the teams into overtime.

In the five-minute bonus session, the Stingrays peppered the Cincinnati cage with six shots but could not come up with the game-winner so, for the second straight meeting, things would be decided in a shootout. After a scoreless opening round, Wayne Simpson and Andrew Rowe each found the net while the Cyclones got a strike from Downing to make it a one-goal affair. In the fifth round, Basaraba was forced to score to extend the game - and he did with a great shot over Jakaitis. After the sixth and seventh rounds went without a goal, Patrick Gaul lit the lamp in the eight round to push his team ahead. This time, though, Cincinnati was unable to answer as MacKenzie Weegar was denied to seal a 4-3 victory for the Stingrays. It was the 22nd consecutive victory for South Carolina and an ECHL-record 14th straight win for Jakaitis.

The Cyclones will be back on the ice at U.S. Bank Arena this Friday when they play host to the Evansville IceMen at 7:30pm! The first 2,000 fans through the gates will take home a limited-edition Cyclones Bank courtesy of our friends at U.S. Bank! Call 513.421.PUCK to secure your seats and for more details. Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook, Twitter (@CincyCyclones), and Instagram!

Click here for tonight's box score