JJ Seaward, Beat Writer Saskatchewan Rush
Lacrosse is Awesome
On Saturday January 7, 2017 and the first game of the new year for the defending NLL champions Saskatchewan Rush, they headed to Infinite Energy Arena in Atlanta, Georgia to face the Swarm. There were only 4,809 fans on hand for the home opener, but the Swarm fans got a real treat. It did not go the way the Rush would have wanted however, as the Swarm would run away with this one winning with a final score of 18-10.
Last night was a historical night for the Swarm and the Rush, as it was the first time in NLL; world; and professional sports history where four brothers would play in one game. The Thompson brothers have been instrumental in the growing of the sport of lacrosse, and it was truly amazing to see them all playing in one game. Three of the Thompson brothers are teammates on the Swarm (Miles Thompson, Lyle Thompson, and Jerome Thompson), and the fourth brother is a member of the Rush (Jeremy Thompson).
One of the other stories that was interesting to keep an eye on during this game, was the season debut of newly acquired Adam Jones of the Saskatchewan Rush. Jones came over in a blockbuster trade during early winter from the Colorado Mammoth, in which we saw the Rush sending Zack Greer to the Mammoth.
The first quarter would remain fairly close, with the Swarm having the slight edge at the end with a score of 4-3. For the Rush it would be Mark Matthews notching himself two goals, and Adam Jones notching his first goal with the Rush. Following the first quarter, the Rush would find their legs as they would score four goals right away. Curtis Knight would get things started for the Rush, with a power-play goal 1:28 into the second quarter with assists coming from Matthews and Jones.
Shortly after Knight’s goal, Jones would get his second of the night at the 2.33 mark with assists coming from Dan Taylor, and Mark Dins dale. About three minutes later, Ryan Keenan would join in on the party with assists coming from Matthews and Knight at the 5:53 mark. Robert Church would follow up with an unassisted goal of his own to give the Rush the 7-4 lead. However, things quickly became unraveled as the Swarm would score four unanswered goals of their own before the end of the second quarter to retain the lead 8-7 at halftime.
Momentum would remain on the Swarms side in the third quarter, as they would convert with another four goals. The lone Rush goal would come from Robert Church, with assists coming from Knight and Keenan. The scoring ways would continue for the Swarm in the final quarter, by outscoring the Rush 6-2 to close out the game. The only goals coming from the Rush were off Adrian Sorichetti, and Matthews (hat-trick). Final Score: Georgia 18—Saskatchewan 10.
The game was riddled with penalties with an astounding 49 minutes between the two teams; and there were 21 power-play opportunities, with more than fifty percent of those (11) resulting in either power-play or shorthanded goals. Next week, the Rush need to figure out what they need to do to settle down the anxiety of the squad; and need to get back to playing like the team that won the Champion’s Cup in 2016 if they want to be successful in 2017 and hope for a repeat.
The Rush will look to get things back on track when they visit the Toronto Rock on January 14, 2017 at 6PM CST.
JJ Seaward, Beat Writer Saskatchewan Rush
Lacrosse is Awesome