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Mark Steenhuis had a hat trick to help the Lakers down
the Rock 13-11 Thursday night. (Photo: Tim Prothero)
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The Peterborough Lakers won the game
13-11, but the Oakville Rock continued to earn respect by winning the
third period 7-1 in Major Series Lacrosse action Thursday night in
Peterborough. The last time the Rock were in Peterborough, they took
a 7-1 lead and were ahead well into the third period before the
Lakers came back to win 14-13. This time, it was the Lakers who
jumped out to an early lead. Peterborough were up 3-0 when Pete
Rennie took a checking from behind double minor at 15:40 of the
first. What looked like a chance for Oakville to bet back into the
game instead turned into a 5-0 first period lead for Peterborough
when Mark Steenhuis and John Grant, Jr. connected for
shorthanded goals.
Oakville got on a bit of a roll opening
the second, scoring 3 of the period's first 4 goals including a pair
from AJ Masson just 12 seconds apart in the first two minutes.
The Lakers then took control, though, scoring 4 goals in 1:36. Josh
Gillam gathered in a rebound of a Grant shot off the back boards
and tucked it home for the first goal at 10:09. Shawn Evans
took a long pass from Tyler Carlson and found the back of the
net behind Tye Belanger exactly a minute later. Jordan
MacIntosh—who won 17 of the 20 faceoffs he took—gained
possession of the ball after a scramble off the following draw and
threaded a perfect 80-foot pass to Steenhuis for the third goal.
MacIntosh and Steenhuis then combined to set up Evans' second goal of
the run 23 seconds after that.
Connor Daly scored his first of
two breakaway goals but the Lakers countered with a pair to head into
the second intermission with a seemingly unassailable 12-4 lead
before a boisterous home crowd of 3,208. The Rock weren't about to
wave the white flag, though. Stephan Leblanc scored a goal on
an outlet pass from Gary Muzzin, who had replaced Belanger
after Peterborough's ninth goal, then set up Masson for his third of
the game before the three-minute mark of the third.
Gatlin Burt scored at 7:03 to
keep Oakville's momentum going, then a minute later Daly stripped
Evans with a hard cross check and broke in to beat Kurtis Wagar
who had replaced Tyler Carlson to start the period. The crowd
sounded notably quieter and rather restless before the ensuing
faceoff, but the Lakers quickly got them excited again when Steenhuis
scored his third goal 11 seconds after Daly had connected, making the
score 13-8 for Peterborough.
The Lakers still weren't home and
cooled out, though. Oakville continued to press and started scoring
goals again a few minutes later. Wagar, who has been excellent in
relief for Peterborough all season, was shaky this time as Rock
shooters found more time and space to shoot against a Lakers defence
that may have backed off a bit. Kyle Davis sandwiched a pair
of goals on almost identical shots from several feet outside the
dotted line around another marker from Leblanc, and Oakville was
within a pair of goals.
Carlson returned to the Lakers net and
helped his team settle down, and there was no more scoring the rest
of the way. MacIntosh led the Lakers with 2 goals and 4 assists while
Grant had 1 goal and 5 assists. Evans scored twice and added 3
assists and Steenhuis had a hat trick and 1 assist.
Masson continued his increasingly
impressive rookie season with a hat trick and an assist for Oakville.
Leblanc (3 assists), Daly, Davis and Burt each added a pair of goals.
Muzzin, after allowing a goal on the first shot he faced, stopped 16
of the remaining 19 that came his way.
Masson now has 12 goals and 13 assists
for 25 points in 12 games played. He says he's getting more and more
comfortable with his role and the league. “Last year [with the
Orangeville Northmen] I was playing a lot of defence and transition
and this year the Rock want me to play more of an offensive role, so
I was just really adjusting to that change. Also the speed going from
junior to senior is different and different calibre players.”
He says the team continued to believe
they could compete with the Lakers despite falling behind, and they
heeded the words of coaches Phil and Brandon Sanderson
(the latter filling in for assistant Blaine Manning, who couldn't
make the game), that if they just kept shooting the balls would start
to drop in eventually.
That approach—just keep plugging away
and working hard—is the team's approach to the season as well,
Masson said. A lot of the improvement they've seen over the season is
attributable to continued hard work and growing confidence. “It's
tough losing games but I think a lot of the guys are staying positive
because of how well we're playing, how much we've developed from the
start of the year against Six Nations [in an 18-10 season-opening
loss] to now. It's a tenfold increase. I think all around we're just
more confident players.”
Both teams face Brooklin at home in
their next action. The Redmen will be in Oakville next Monday, July 8
then visit the Lakers next Thursday, July 11.
