The Green Bay Gamblers dropped a 4-2 decision in Dubuque Saturday night, falling behind early and never fully recovering.

Dubuque wasted no time, scoring twice in the opening four minutes to put Green Bay on its heels. The fast start set the tone, with the Saints controlling play and outshooting the Gamblers early.

Green Bay answered late in the first. Will Wooten found the net shorthanded to cut it to 2-1 and give the Gamblers some life. Dubuque responded just 17 seconds later on the power play to push the lead back to two heading into the intermission.

In the third, the Gamblers made one more push. Carcone capitalized on the power play to cut the deficit to 3-2, and Green Bay had a chance to make it interesting late. That would be as close as they’d get, though, as Dubuque added an empty-net goal to seal it.

Dubuque finished with a 30-24 edge in shots. Raul “Junior” Henriquez made 26 saves and kept the Gamblers within reach despite the early surge.

Green Bay has hit a bit of a skid, but they remain in a strong position in the Eastern Conference and have already secured a postseason spot heading into the final stretch.

They’ll try to bounce back quickly with a date at Fox Valley Ice Arena taking on Chicago Sunday afternoon for a 3:05 puck drop.