Rock, Seals, FireWolves and Bandits win quarterfinals
There are just a handful of Peterborough lacrosse connections left fighting for the National Lacrosse League Cup.
The four highest seeds — Toronto, San Diego, Albany and Buffalo — are heading to the semifinals after winning their quarterfinal matchups.
Here’s a quick rundown of the weekend’s action:
Toronto Rock 9, Rochester Knighthawks 6
After a 15-3 regular season, the Rock were the clear favourites heading into their game against the Knighthawks, who squeaked into the playoffs with some luck in the final weekend, beating their 3.13 per cent odds to make it. The Rock jumped out to an early lead after a four-goal run in 1:38. They never let the Mike Hasen-led Knighthawks get within three goals, with MVP candidate Nick Rose making 51 saves.
Mark Matthews had a goal and three assists for Toronto, while Corey Small had a goal and two assists. Turner Evans had one assist for Rochester, while defenders Thomas Whitty, Mitch Ogilvie and Matt Gilray were held pointless.
San Diego Seals 9, Panther City Lacrosse Club 8 OT
Tracey Kelusky’s Panther City club put up a good fight against the higher-ranked Seals, taking them to overtime, where PCLC had success this season. They matched San Diego goal for goal, with the game tied eight times. Dane Dobbie scored the winner 2:49 into the extra frame.
Curtis Dickson contributed a pair of assists for San Diego, including the first assist on the game-winning goal, as well as 14 shots on goal. Mike Poulin was the backup goaltender for the Seals, where he has served as a mentor to Christopher Origlieri throughout the season. Jason Knox and Dylan Hutchison each had one assist for Panther City, while former Peterborough Timbermen goalie Nick Damude took the loss, making 54 saves.
Albany FireWolves 9, Halifax Thunderbirds 3
Many pundits predicted the lowerseeded, but more experienced Thunderbirds would beat the youthful FireWolves, who started the season 10-2 before they ran out of gas amid a five-game losing streak. Nobody predicted Halifax’s absolute offensive meltdown. FireWolves’ goaltender Doug Jamieson made 52 saves, holding Halifax scoreless in the second and fourth quarters.
With a 6-3 Albany lead in the fourth, Halifax had no energy and no answer, and let their frustration show in the dying moments of the game. Jake Withers took a fiveminute slashing penalty, and was then ejected from the game for talking back to the referees. David Brock followed him to the early shower after trying to leave the penalty box to get at a fan in the stands. Ethan Walker had one goal for Albany.
Buffalo Bandits 10, Georgia Swarm 9 OT
The Bandits have a chance to defend their title after beating the Swarm in overtime in another close quarterfinal. Tied 5-5 at halftime, the Bandits pulled ahead 8-5 only to watch the Swarm score four in a row to lead 9-8 with 6:34 left to play. Kyle Buchanan tied it for the Bandits, scooping up a Dhane Smith rebound and shovelling it into the goal.
The Bandits thought they won the game when Smith scored at the buzzer, but upon review the goal crossed the line a second too late. Josh Byrne scored the game winner, his fifth of the night, 4:01 into overtime.
Matt Vinc made 46 saves for Buffalo, including three solid stops in overtime. Buchanan added an assist to his game-tying tally, and Nick Weiss scored a transition marker.
Semifinal Setup
The Rock will face the Bandits in one semifinal, while the Seals will face the FireWolves in the other. Both series are a best-of-three and kick off on Friday night, with the second game in each series on Sunday. If Game 3s are necessary, Albany will visit San Diego on May 10, and Buffalo will visit Hamilton to face the Rock on May 11.