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NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Knighthawks Can Clinch Playoff Berth with Win

April 14, 2013 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


The Rochester Knighthawks (7-7) finish their stretch of four games in nine days in Edmonton as they take on the Rush on Sunday, April 14th at 4:00 p.m.

Win and They're In: The Knighthawks can clinch a playoff berth and the second seed in the East Division with a win over the Rush on Sunday.

Head-to-Head: The Knighthawks are 1-3 all-time versus Edmonton, and are 0-1 on the road. Rochester lost its previous meeting against the Rush 11-9 on March 16th at The Blue Cross Arena.

Last Game: On Saturday, April 13th the Knighthawks defeated the Calgary Roughnecks 15-14 in a back-and-forth thriller. The game featured six lead changes and was tied on 10 different occasions. Neither team led by more than two at any point throughout the game. Calgary opened the fourth quarter with three unanswered to take a 12-10 lead, but Rochester responded with three of its own to go up 13-12. After Geoff Snider scored the equalizer, Dan Dawson completed his hat trick and with 1:38 remaining and Craig Point scored the game-winner. Curtis Dickson but the deficit to one with 18 seconds remaining, but the Roughnecks were unable to draw even on the ensuing possession. Dawson tied his season-high with 11 points (3+8). Cody Jamieson scored nine (3+6). Cory Vitarelli also scored a hat trick, finishing with six points (3+3). Johnny Powless and Mike Accursi each added five points (2+3). Matt Vinc made 44 saves on 58 shots. Former Knighthawk Shawn Evans scored 10 points (3+7), including Calgary's two goals in the first quarter, both on the power play.

Vinc closing in on history: Goalie Matt Vinc enters the game with a league-best 10.05 goals-against average and an .809 save percentage. He is also second with 593 saves, which is six away from passing Pat O'Toole's team single-season record of 598 set in 2006. With seven saves Sunday, Vinc would become the first Rochester goalie to record 600 saves in a season.

Knighthawks Notes: With a victory over Edmonton, Rochester would claim the second seed in the East. The Knighthawks are hanging onto a half-game lead over the Wings for the second in the division. The Knighthawks are 6-1 when leading after the first quarter, 5-1 when leading after the second quarter and 7-2 when leading after three. On the other hand, they are 0-4 when trailing after one quarter, 1-3 when trailing after two and 0-5 when trailing after three. The 15 goals scored in Calgary was the most since scoring 15 in a win over Buffalo on February 9th. Cory Vitarelli scored his 100th career point (60+40) with an assist on Dan Dawson's fourth-quarter goal at 12:01. Mike Accursi is now seventh all-time in Knighthawks history with 135 goals, surpassing Calgary Head Coach Curt Malawsky. Cody Jamieson is 10th in goals scored with 90, surpassing Paul Gait. Matt Vinc is now second with 1,761 saves, surpassing Steve Dietrich.

Dynamic Duo: Dan Dawson is coming off his second 11-point game of the season. He now has 28 points (11+17) in his last five games. Cody Jamieson has also had success in his last five games, collecting 32 points (8+24). Jamieson is fifth in the NLL with 51 assists, which is a career high. He needs nine points to set a new single-season best. He currently has 77 points.

The following Knighthawks are nearing career milestones:

- Mike Accursi (217) needs one assist to tie Cory Bomberry (218) for fourth in franchise history in assists;

- Cody Jamieson (215) needs eight points to tie Derek Malawsky (223) for 10th all-time in points;

- Brad Self is five points shy of 150;

- Matt Vinc needs 35 saves for 4,000.

Edmonton Notes: The Rush (8-6) are a league-best 7-3 in their last ten games, but dropped a 9-7 decision to the Colorado Mammoth on April 6th. The loss was their lowest scoring game of the season. The Rush are 0-5 when scoring 10 or fewer goals, and are 8-1 when scoring 11 or more. Mark Matthews leads all rookies with 62 points (36+26). The Rush have scored a league-high 53 goals in the first quarter while allowing a league-low 28 goals in the first quarter. Defenseman Kyle Rubisch leads the NLL with 38 forced turnovers and is tied for sixth with 113 loose balls. Jeremy Thompson is fifth with 143 faceoff victories. Former Knighthawk Aaron Bold is second with a 10.39 goals-against average.

Next Game: The Knighthawks finish their regular season against the Buffalo Bandits on April 20th at 7:30 p.m. The game can be seen live on the CBS Sports Network and heard live on Sportsradio 950 ESPN and on www.sportsradio950espn.com.

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