Justin Ivey, Co-Editor
Lacrosse is Awesome©
The Saskatchewan Rush (11-3) hosted the San Diego Seals (6-7) Saturday night at SaskTel Centre, where they have been perfect so far this season. Saskatchewan sits atop the NLL standings, and by halftime both the arena and team knew that if they won the game they would clinch a postseason berth, thanks to Vancouver’s win over Georgia earlier in the evening. The Seals entered the night with a strong 4-1 road record this season and controlled much of the opening quarter. Backed by stout defense and a red-hot Christopher Origlieri (9GA, 37SV), San Diego’s offense paced themselves for quality looks and an early lead. The fortunes flipped in the second half though, as Frank Scigliano (9GA, 39SV) repeatedly shut the door and the Rush outscored the Seals 6-3 over the final 30 minutes. Final Score: San Diego Seals – 9, Saskatchewan Rush – 10.
San Diego’s Ari Steenhuis (1G, 1A) scored his first NLL goal to open the scoring just over five minutes into the game, finishing alone in transition. After the goal the teams got tangled up and matching dead-ball penalties were assessed. Playing four-on-four, Tre Leclaire (2G, 2A) made it 2-0 Seals with 8:34 left in the opening quarter, launching a laser from outside. After several outstanding defensive stands, San Diego struck again when Ben McIntosh (4G, 1A) caught a feed from Leclaire while cutting to the net, spinning and finishing in one motion. With 3:09 remaining, Saskatchewan was served a slashing penalty and needed a spark. Robert Church (3G, 2A) provided it early on the power play, dangling the stick behind his head before firing an overhand shot with no defender in sight. Seconds later Austin Shanks (1G, 1A) gathered a rebound off the back glass and bounced a shot through Origlieri’s legs. Not done yet, Josh Zawada (1G, 1A) scored jumping through the crease after a sweet feed from Ryan Keenan (2A) with just over a minute remaining. At the end of the first quarter, San Diego and Saskatchewan were tied 3-3.
After winning the opening faceoff of the second quarter, the Rush were called for a penalty. Origlieri went to the bench and the extra attacker came on, leading to another McIntosh goal as he buried an underhand shot from outside. Church quickly answered, dodging to the crease and finishing on a jumping shot. After two quick goals to start the quarter, scoring slowed for more than eight minutes. With 10:53 remaining, Saskatchewan was sent to the box for holding, giving San Diego their first power play opportunity of the night, but the Seals could not convert. With 6:31 left, San Diego went man-down for two minutes following a goalie interference call on a Dylan Watson crease dive. Connor Robinson (1G, 1A) spun through two defenders after burning some clock and scored a shorthanded goal. Saskatchewan could not capitalize on the power play, and McIntosh continued to drive the Seals’ offense, completing his hat trick with 2:28 left in the half by ripping a sidearm shot from up top through traffic in front of Scigliano. With 16 seconds left the Rush called timeout for the final possession of the half, but Origlieri made a strong save on a shot in close and the follow-up attempt at the empty net went wide. At the half, San Diego led Saskatchewan 6-4.
The Rush struck first in the third quarter, though it took more than two minutes for the opening goal. Zach Manns (2G, 2A) hit the afterburners and drove straight to the crease before finishing in close. With just under 11 minutes remaining, Saskatchewan was called for tripping and sent out the penalty kill. The Rush turned the opportunity into their 10th shorthanded goal of the season when Matt Acchione (1G) finished in transition to tie the game with 9:30 left in the quarter. Saskatchewan nearly struck again following a strong defensive stand off the next faceoff before finally taking their first lead. With 4:06 remaining and an extra attacker on the floor due to a delayed penalty, Ryan Barnable (1G) quick-sticked a cross-floor pass from Brock Haley (4A) into the net. On the ensuing faceoff Trevor Baptiste was called for a cross-check and sent to the box after a lengthy scramble for the ball. Shortly into the opportunity Church sniped a shot from distance over a pick. San Diego finally scored their first goal of the second half with 2:17 remaining in the quarter when Graydon Bradley (1G) finished short side after running untouched to the net in transition. At the end of the third quarter, Saskatchewan led San Deigo 8-7.
Saskatchewan earned a power play just over two minutes into the fourth quarter but could not convert, falling to 2-for-4 on the night. Despite the missed chance, the Rush still struck first in the final frame as Manns caught the ball in the middle of the zone and quickly found the net. With 8:22 remaining, Saskatchewan led by two. With 2:24 left the Rush gave San Diego an opening when they were called for goalie interference. Leclaire wasted no time capitalizing, firing a sidearm shot from the top of the zone to cut the deficit to one with 2:05 remaining. The Seals gained possession with 32 seconds left and brought on the extra attacker, but the opportunity slipped away in transition. Matt Hossack (1G) scooped up the loose ball and scored on the empty net. McIntosh answered quickly with a hard bounce shot from in close, but only five seconds remained. Final Score: San Diego Seals – 9, Saskatchewan Rush – 10.
Up Next:
The Saskatchewan Rush (11-3) travel to play the Toronto Rock on Friday, March 20 at 7:30 PM EDT.
The San Diego Seals (6-7) host the Buffalo Bandits on Saturday, March 21 at 10:00 PM EDT.