NLL Colorado Mammoth

Mammoth Denied Playoff Berth, Loses in Final Seconds

Published on March 23, 2012 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Colorado Mammoth News Release


DENVER - An opportunity to breathe easy quickly transformed to heartbreak for the Colorado Mammoth on Friday night.

A win against the Philadelphia Wings would have clinched a playoff berth for the Mammoth with five games to play. Those hopes dissolved when Brendan Mundorf ripped home a shot from the right slot with 3.7 seconds to play, allowing the Wings to overthrow Colorado 13-12 at the Pepsi Center.

Despite a crowd-igniting sock trick of six goals by John Grant Jr., Colorado (8-3) absorbed its first two-game losing streak of the season in a matchup of National Lacrosse League division leaders.

"We battled hard and Philly's a great team," Mammoth coach Bob Hamley said. "They just got a great goal."

Colorado remained a half-game ahead of Calgary in the West Division after a contest that featured the league's top two scorers in Grant Jr. and Philadelphia's Dan Dawson.

Grant, returning from a two-game absence (upper-body injury), added an assist to finish with seven points. Dawson contributed two goals and six assists to take a 76-75 lead on Grant in the league's scoring race. Each is chasing the single-season mark of 115 set by Buffalo's John Tavares in 2001.

Gavin Prout added two goals and six assists for the Mammoth, and Colorado also received two goals and one assist from Adam Jones. Jones is competing with Philadelphia's Kevin Crowley (two goals and three assists) in the rookie-of-the-year race.

Mundorf, though, was the star. His winner polished his glitzy line of five goals and four assists.

After Grant's sixth goal tied it 12-12 with 6:29 to play and sent a cascade of socks on to the surface, things went suddenly scoreless. Philadelphia goalie Brandon Miller stopped an around-the-back shot by Grant with about 33 seconds to go, then the East-Division-leading Wings called timeout with 25 seconds left.

Patient and precise, the Wings (7-4) waited until the clock descended to single digits and set up the play for Mundorf, who beat Mammoth goaltender Chris Levis (36 saves).

The crowd of 14,876 was especially vocal in the final period, buoyed to life by Grant's spectacular performance. He finished the contest with a league-best 37 goals.

"He's always incredible," Prout said. "Tonight he stuck out a little more than he has because of the amount of goals, but a lot of people don't see all the little things he does."

Colorado gets a shot at redemption Sunday at Philadelphia (2 p.m., MST), with Prout hoping "to steal one from them in their barn."

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