The Wellington Dukes continued their recent slide as they dropped a matchup with the Haliburton County Huskies Saturday night.
The Dukes hit the road to take on the Huskies in Minden looking to snap a three-game skid.
Wellington started the game on the right foot as Harrison Ballard scored just seven-and-a-half minutes into the first period with assists coming from Kellan Dostaler and and Barret Joynt.
They held the lead until late in the period when the Huskies countered with a goal of their own with just 12 seconds left on the clock when forward Lucas Stevenson solved Dukes goalie Matt Dunsmoor.
The second period proved to be a defensive battle as neither team was able to break the deadlock and the 1-1 score carried into the third.
Just three-and-a-half minutes into the third, Haliburton County’s Oliver Tarr scored to give the Huskies a 2-1 lead.
They held the lead for ten minutes before Joynt knotted the game at 2 with his second point of the night on a goal from Alex Case and Ballard.
Two minutes later Tarr played hero for the Huskies, scoring his second of the game which would hold up as the game winner as Haliburton County took the 3-2 victory.
The Dukes were stymied by Huskies goaltender Christian Cicigoi as they were unable to score more than twice despite shooting 31 shots on net while giving up 42 on Dunsmoor.
The loss lifted Haliburton County over the Dukes in the standings early in the season, with Wellington falling to 3-5-0-1 and to the bottom of the east division.
Ballard and Joynt led the way on the night for Wellington with two points each in the loss.
The Dukes are back in action on Monday at home against the Toronto Patriots as they look to snap a four game losing streak.
The puck drops at Lehigh Arena at 4:30 p.m.
