Royals sweep 3-in-3 with Americans to win sixth straight, 5-2

Reading, PA – Tied at two entering the third period, the Reading Royals scored three goals in the final frame with Deibler Dental 1st Star Joe Houk leading the charge (career-high 4 assists) vs. the Allen Americans, netting the Royals their sixth straight win, 5-2, Sunday at Santander Arena.Houk set up the Royals’ game-winning goal by Chris McCarthy (2g) at 3:58 of the third. Houk drove to the left post, patiently waited for a passing lane and one-handed the puck to McCarthy who slammed it in at the right post.  McCarthy finished the weekend with seven points (4g).Josh MacDonald scored the game’s first goal and received a pass from Houk for an insurance strike and power-play marker that made it 4-2 Reading with 1:22 to go in the game. McCarthy scored his second of the game into the empty net with 11 seconds left.  Andrew D’Agostini won his third straight start in his third consecutive day playing, denying 31 shots. Kyle Hayton took the loss with 30 saves.The Royals have won the season series with the Americans, taking three of the first five.  Box ScoreMacDonald opened the scoring with his 11th of the season at 7:04 of the first. Houk nubbed a pass from neutral ice to the Americans line, connecting with MacDonald. He flew into the zone, drove the left-wing circle and unleashed a short-side shot by Hayton.Three minutes later, Jacob Doty’s right-point slap shot struck Spencer Asuchak’s stick at the top of the crease and deflected by D’Agostini. Adam Miller scored a go-ahead goal for Allen with 6:26 left in the second, deflecting a slap shot from Zach Pochiro.Two minutes later with Reading down, 2-1, Alex Roos started a power-play rush up the right wing and broke the zone line. He sauced a feed that Schmidt caught at the right slot. Schmidt skated to the slot and back handed it over Hayton’s right shoulder to tie.The Royals struck for the next three in the third and scored two man-up goals to finish 2-for-6 with the power play. Allen went 0-for-2 on the man up.The Royals return home Dec. 28-29 for A-Philly-Ation Night vs. Newfoundland. Are your kids driving you crazy? Well, bring them to the Royals and have them yell and scream as loud as they want! Four purple zone tickets for just $60! Plus, an opportunity to high five the Royals players in our High Five Tunnel before the game!About the RoyalsThe Royals have been owned by serial entrepreneur Jack Gulati since 2014 and are entering their 18th ECHL season. Proudly affiliated with the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers and AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Reading plays in the Santander Arena, located in downtown Reading, PA at 700 Penn Street. The Royals won the Kelly Cup in 2013, have made the playoffs in nine straight seasons and are four-time division champions.Listen to all Royals broadcasts at Mixlr.com/ReadingRoyals or by downloading the Mixlr App from the App Store or Google Play.