JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (WCIV) — The South Carolina Stingrays opened their 2026-27 season with a 5-1 win over the Jacksonville Icemen on Friday night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.

The victory was Jesse Kallechy’s first as the Stingrays’ coach. South Carolina outshot Jacksonville by a 2-to-1 margin and scored five unanswered goals after falling behind early.

Colby Ambrosio put Jacksonville ahead just over a minute into the game, capitalizing on a Stingrays turnover. South Carolina had 13 of the first 14 shots but trailed 1-0 after the first period.

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Jérémie Biakabutuka tied the game with a slap shot with just over five minutes left in the second. Tyler Weiss then set up Ryan Sandelin for the go-ahead goal in the final seconds of the period.

The Stingrays extended their lead on a power-play goal by Josh Wilkins early in the third. Kyle Jackson assisted on the goal. Alex Gaffney later set up Cam Morrison for Morrison’s first goal as a Stingray, and Tyler Kopff scored against his former team to make it 5-1.

Garin Bjorklund stopped 21 of 22 shots for South Carolina. The win improved his career record against Jacksonville to 8-0. Gaffney recorded his first professional point with his assist.

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