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Swarm's early deficit proves too much on the road

March 27, 2010 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Minnesota Swarm News Release


SAINT PAUL, MN - In the second of back-to-back road games this weekend, the National Lacrosse League's (NLL) Minnesota Swarm (5-6) couldn't recover from an early deficit, losing to the Edmonton Rush (7-4), 16-14, in front of 6,200 fans Saturday night at Rexall Place.

F Aaron Wilson led the Swarm with nine points (3g, 6a) as the Minnesota fell to a division rival but remain in a playoff spot after going 2-2 during its month-long road trip. Both teams will face-off next Saturday at Xcel Energy Center for a West-Division rematch with heavy playoff implications.

The Swarm dug itself into a hole early and could never fully recover. After F Callum Crawford (3g, 4a) tallied his 19th goal of the season just one minute into the game, Edmonton exploded for six unanswered.

Both teams set a blistering pace to start the game, totaling 17 goals in the first half. Edmonton was up 3-1 only two-and-a-half minutes into the contest. A couple goalie changes and a timeout gave the Swarm a chance to recoup, but it was their league-leading power play that gave them life.

Minnesota converted on 3-of-4 attempts in the first half and 4-of-5 for the game. Wilson and F Sean Pollock (3g, 1a) each tallied two with the man advantage. Aside from one Rush penalty in the second half, which Pollock converted on, Edmonton wisely stayed out of the box for the remainder of the night. It could have been the difference as Minnesota's power-play unit was on fire this weekend, going 5-for-6 with the man advantage in Friday night's 17-13 win at Calgary.

Crawford continued adding to his career-high totals during his first year with the Swarm. Tied for the team points lead with 56 heading into Saturday's contest, Crawford totaled seven more Saturday night, including a big goal only 14 seconds into the third quarter before briefly leaving the game after receiving a cross check to the back of the neck. He returned and finished the game.

Rookie F Zack Greer (3g, 0a) notched his first-ever NLL hat trick. Pollock also tallied a hat trick in the high-scoring affair.

F Ryan Benesch (0g, 5a), after tallying a franchise-record nine assists last night in Calgary, added another five against the Rush, including a gritty individual effort capturing a loose ball late in the fourth quarter and feeding it to Wilson for a big goal that pulled the Swarm within two. Benesch ranks second on the team with 40 assists in his first year with the Swarm.

Minnesota returns home against the Rush on Saturday, April 3 at 7:35 p.m. CST at Xcel Energy Center. The team will be wearing pink and black uniforms in addition to specially made pink Reebok helmets for Hive Cares night.

Fans can purchase the Onword Spirit "Swarm On" T-Shirt Ticket Package for $25 and receive a ticket to the game along with a special commemorative Hive Cares T-shirt, $3 of which will go to the Grace Fund on behalf of Julie Johnson. Tickets are available online at mnswarm.com or by calling 888-MN-SWARM.



National Lacrosse League Stories from March 27, 2010


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