Stealth Fall in Another Canadian Battle
April 6, 2014 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Vancouver Stealth News Release
(Vancouver, BC) The Vancouver Stealth's (4-10) slow start proved costly, as they fell 17-9 to the Toronto Rock (6-9) in Saturday night NLL action at the Langley Events Centre,
"Right from the get go we put ourselves behind the eight ball," said Stealth Captain, Kyle Sorensen, who made his return to the lineup after missing time due to injury.
"We battled back a bit after the slow start, but then we fell asleep again." The Rock led right from the get go, outscoring the Stealth 6-2 in the opening quarter and held an 11-4 advantage at halftime,
"We've had a number of good starts this year, our problem has been the middle of the games at times," said Toronto Rock head coach, John Lovell.
"It was good that we maintained our momentum throughout the third and fourth quarters tonight." Langley, BC native Garrett Billings led the charge for the Rock in the opening half assisting on the team's first five goals of the game and finished the half with seven points to lead all players. However, Billings would end up leaving the game with an injury in the second quarter and did not return,
"We're not sure where he is and you don't replace a player like that," said coach Lovell.
"It's devastating to us because of his ability and I feel sorry for the guy because he's one of the best, if not the best player in this league. It's a shame that it happened." In second half the teams were basically even offensively, with the Rock scoring six goals to the Stealth's five. Rhys Duch led the charge for the Stealth in the second half finishing the game with four goals in a losing cause. Duch was also named the third star of the game. The second half also turned into a physical battle, as the two Canadian teams combined for 37 penalty minutes, in the second half alone. The playoff like atmosphere at the LEC seemed to fuel the Stealth in the second half, but their slow start was too much to overcome,
"We showed flashes of brilliance but that's not good enough. We've put ourselves in this position too many times this year," said Sorensen.
"We know we can play 60 minutes, we did it last week against Buffalo." The Stealth now head out on the road to face the Rochester Knighthawks on April 12, in what will be a repeat of last year's Champions Cup Final. For more information on upcoming games visit www.StealthLAX.com.
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National Lacrosse League Stories from April 6, 2014
- Stealth Fall in Another Canadian Battle - Vancouver Stealth
- Mammoth Unable to Complete Comeback against Unbeaten Rush - Colorado Mammoth
- Rock Defeat Vancouver 17-9 - Toronto Rock
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