Eastern Division Wins 20-16

Published on March 11, 2007 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Portland Lumberjax News Release


PORTLAND, March 10, 2007 - In Portland's first-ever professional All-Star event, the Eastern Division defeated the Western Division 20-16 in front of 12,856 fans tonight at the 2007 National Lacrosse League (NLL) All-Star Game. Buffalo Bandits transition player Mark Steenhuis took home the night's Most Valuable Player award for his six goal-one assist performance. The LumberJax own Ryan Powell led the Western Division All-Stars in goals with four, while Colorado's Gavin Prout earned eight points on three goals and five assists.

"I really tried to soak everything in from this weekend," Steenhuis told the media during the postgame press conference. "I really enjoyed getting the opportunity to go out on the floor and play in front of the fans tonight. It was definitely one of my favorite things."

"I thought that the Portland LumberJax organization did a great job of welcoming us to this beautiful city, from the moment we got to the airport up until this moment," said Eastern All-Star John Tavares (4G). "Everything was top-class, and when we get treated this well, we want to make sure we perform to our ability. When we see a lot of people in the seats, we want to give them a good reason to come back."

After a welcoming by NLL Commissioner Jim Jennings and LumberJax owner Angela Batinovich, the All-Star Game was underway. The Eastern Division took control of the game with the first two goals of the night coming from Buffalo's Tavares (0:29) and Steenhuis (1:05). The Western Division All-Stars finally gained control of the ball when San Jose's Colin Doyle (3G, 2A) found the back of the net at 3:34. At 6:45 Rochester's Shawn Williams (3G, 2A) scored the third goal of the night for the Eastern All-Stars which gave them a two-point lead, before San Jose's Jeff Zywicki (3G, 1A) scored one for the West at 8:14. LumberJax forward Powell netted one past the East's goalie to tie the game three all, before Steenhuis ripped another goal into the West's net at 2:11, regaining the lead. After Tavares added another point for the East, Western Division All-Star R. Powell followed it up with a goal at 14:18. The Western All-Stars pulled their goalie in a six-on-five-attempt but left an open net for Casey Powell's unassisted goal at 14:58. The Eastern Division All-Stars ended the quarter with a 6-4 lead entering the second.

Scoring resumed with Philadelphia's Geoff Snider (2:05; 3G, 3A) from the East. The West went on a three-goal scoring run to tie the game at 7-7. The goals came from San Jose's Doyle (3:35), Colorado's Prout (6:16) and Calgary's Lewis Ratcliff (7:04; 1G, 1A) before Bandits defender Pat McCready (7:25; 1G, 1A) and Rochester forward Williams (8:08) ended their scoring run. Western captain Prout narrowed the lead to one goal, but Williams tallied another on a man-up opportunity to keep the Eastern lead at 10-8 to wrap up the half.

The third quarter began with the Eastern Division commanding the score with goals from Steenhuis (1:01) and Snider (5:12) to take a 12-8 lead. Western forward R. Powell found the right time to score a hat trick during the game at 6:31 when he ended the East's three-goal scoring run. Goals from Knighthawks Scott Evans (8:15; 1G, 1A) and Tavares (8:51) set up Steenhuis' fourth goal (9:32) and a 15-9 lead. Jax defenseman Bruce Alexander (1A) assisted R. Powell's fourth goal of the night at 12:10. Steenhuis scored his fifth goal of the contest at 13:09. Philadelphia's Josh Sims (1G, 1A) netted one last goal in the third at 14:55, ending the quarter at 16-11.

The Western Division stepped up the scoring with goals from San Jose's Zywicki (0:45), Prout (0:53) and Doyle (4:48), narrowing the lead to two goals. Tavares scored his fourth goal of the night at 6:00, but Edmonton's Jimmy Quinlan (6:38; 1G, 3A) quickly answered for the West. Steenhuis scored his sixth goal at 8:16 which gave the East an 18-15 lead and secured his position as Most Valuable Player tonight. Goals form Zywicki (11:36), Snider (11:56) and C. Powell (14:41) ended the game with the Eastern Division securing a 20-16 victory over the Western Division in the Rose Garden.

All-Star Skills Competition Winners

Agility - Rochester Knighthawks Steve Toll

Shot Accuracy - Philadelphia Wing Geoff Snider

Fastest Shot - Colorado Denver Josh Sims (102 miles per hour)

Trick Shot Contest - Eastern Division Casey Powell Western Division Dan Dawson (co-winner)

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