A three-goal outburst in less than a minute and a half was enough for the Victoria Shamrocks to overcome the Langley Thunder in Game 2 of the Western Lacrosse Association finals, on Monday night (Aug. 19) at the Langley Events Centre.
The Thunder had cut the deficit to 6-5, but the Shamrocks responded with three goals – one on the power play, one at even strength, and one shorthanded – to secure a 9-5 lead, eventually winning 11-7.
“We know we need to be at our best against this team; they went undefeated for a reason. We have to limit our mistakes,” said Thunder coach Bryan Poole. “They went on a 3-goal run in the third period and we paid for it.”
Victoria led 3-1 after a period and the deficit could have been even larger as the Shamrocks overpowered Langley 24-14 in shots.
The Thunder tied the game 3-3 midway through the second period before surrendering a pair of power-play goals. They closed the gap to 5-4 by the second intermission. The teams traded goals early in the third, but the Shamrocks pulled ahead with a three-goal run.
Jesse King (2-3), Marshal King (2-2), Mathieu Gautier (2-1) and Trent DiCicco (2-0) each scored twice for Victoria. Chris Origlieri made 35 saves in goal and was the game’s third star with Jesse King and Langley's Robert Church earning first and second-star honours, respectively.
Church led Langley with two goals and five points while Connor Robinson (0-3), Clay Scanlan (2-1) and Chase Scanlan (1-2) each finished with three-point games. Nathaniel Kozevnikov (1-1) and Kyle Brunsch scored once.
The Shamrocks took Game 1 by a 10-8 score on Saturday, Aug. 17 in Victoria and now lead the best-of-seven series 2-0.
The series will resume on Wednesday, Aug. 21 at Langley Events Centre, before returning to Victoria on Aug. 23.
To buy tickets or for more information about the Shamrocks, visit victoriashamrocks.com.
