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NLL Rochester Knighthawks

Late Push Not Enough in 14-11 Loss to Rock

December 28, 2019 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Rochester Knighthawks News Release


(Rochester, NY) - The Rochester Knighthawks (0-3) went goal-for-goal with the Toronto Rock (2-1) for the duration of the second half, but a six-goal run by the visitors ultimately proved to be the difference as the Knighthawks came up on the losing end of a 14-11 decision in the first of half of a home-and-home set between the two teams Saturday at Segar & Sciortino Field at The Blue Cross Arena.

Curtis Knight led the offensive charge for the Knighthawks with a team-high six-point (2+4) night while the duo of Shawn (3+2) and Turner Evans (2+2) combined for nine points. Steve Fryer earned his second straight in net, turning aside 26 shots before being replaced by Craig Wende midway through the third quarter. Wende was tagged with the loss despite finishing with 16 saves, including a pair of highlight reel stops early on in the fourth quarter.

Dan Dawson, a former a Knighthawk in the previous organization, paced the Rock with seven points, including six assists, while Rob Hellyer and Dan Craig each scored four goals as Toronto won its second straight on the road while improving to 2-1 overall on the season. Nick Rose made 38 saves to pick up his second win of the season

For the second time in a week, the Knighthawks found themselves in an uphill climb. Facing a 12-5 deficit late in the third quarter following a sequence in with the Rock outscored Rochester 9-2, the Knighthawks made another late game push to close the gap.

Rochester soon shifted the momentum in its favor, outscoring Toronto 5-1 to make it a 13-10 game at the 12:35 mark. Shawn Evans bookended a three-goal run that carried into the start of the fourth quarter and then completed his hat trick on the power-play at 11:38 following a goal by Craig. Goals in the final minutes from Turner Evans and Knight would bring the Knighthawks as close they would come but would see their comeback bid fall just short for the second straight week.

"I think tonight we got a little away from the game plan early in the third quarter and they took advantage of us," said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. "It's just finding that consistency and learning to stick with it."

Rochester trailed the Rock 6-3 at the half, but it certainly wasn't for the lack of quality scoring chances. The Knighthawks tested Rose early and often throughout the first half, especially in the first quarter when he was forced to make some timely saves on a relentless transition unit from Rochester.

Two quick goals in a span of 2:35 provided the Rock with an early 2-0 lead before Pat Saunders finally solved Rose at 11:50 to cut the deficit in half. His second goal of the season would be assisted by Thomas Whitty and Chris Willman.

Hellyer restored the two-goal cushion for Toronto just 52 seconds later with his first of three goals of the half but that too would be quickly answered by the Knighthawks. On the ensuing shift, Cory Highfield corralled a loose ball in front of Rose and wired a shot that snuck through the legs of the Toronto goaltender for an unassisted tally to bring Rochester back within a goal at the close of the opening quarter.

Phil Caputo, who was a member of the Rock last season, evened the score at 3-3 with his second goal of the season 4:45 into the second frame, but Toronto countered less than a minute later to go on six-goal run.

Despite a late-game push, the Knighthawks were never able to fully recover and came up short in the final minutes to remain winless on the young season.

"The good thing about the upcoming bye week is that we have them (Toronto) again coming out of it, so we'll have an opportunity to evaluate and regroup.

The Knighthawks will have their chance at redemption on Saturday, Jan. 11 when the home-and-home series shifts north of the border for a rematch at Scotiabank Arena in downtown Toronto. The 7:00 p.m. matchup will be carried live on 107.3 FM The Bull as well as B/R Live. Fans can stay up to date all season long with the latest Knighthawks news, stories and notes at www.rochesterknighthawks.com.

Post-Game Interviews

Knighthawks Forward Shawn Evans - khawks.co/WlzCRW

Knighthawks Forward Turner Evans - khawks.co/vczTfh

Knighthawks Forward Curtis Knight - khawks.co/Yb5TCT

Knighthawks Head Coach Mike Hasen - khawks.co/cmAgsy

Goal Scorers

ROC: T. Evans (2), C. Knight (2), S. Evans (3), P. Caputo (1), H. Cattoni (1), P. Saunders (1), C. Highfield (1)

TOR: Z. Manns (2), D. Dawson (1), R. Hellyer (4), C. Rogers (1), D. Craig (4), T. Schreiber (2)

Goaltenders

ROC: S. Fryer - 26/36 (ND) | C. Wende - 16/19 (L)

TOR: N. Rose - 38/49 (W)

Shots

ROC: 49

TOR: 55

Special Teams

ROC: PP (3/5) | PK (1/1)

TOR: PP (0/1) | PK (2/5)

Three Stars

1. R. Hellyer (TOR)

2. D. Dawson (TOR)

3. D. Craig (TOR)

Check out the Rochester Knighthawks Statistics



National Lacrosse League Stories from December 28, 2019


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