Rush snaps losing skid in divisional battle
Published on March 25, 2012 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Edmonton Rush News Release
Edmonton - The Edmonton Rush fired 57 shots on net and held off a late Washington charge as the Rush edged the Stealth 10-9 in National Lacrosse League action Saturday at Crystal Glass Field at Rexall Place.
Edmonton snapped a three-game losing skid as the Rush improved to 3-7 on the campaign and Washington fell to 3-8. It was the second victory for the Rush over Washington this season as Edmonton routed the Stealth 16-5 Jan. 28 in Everett.
Shawn Williams (2G, 4A) had six points Saturday night to lead the Rush and Zack Greer fired four goals while the Edmonton defense kept the potent Washington attack to under-10 goals scored against and only 39 shots allowed.
More importantly for Edmonton, the club was able to rise up in the third and fourth quarters, rather than wilt as in the past handful of games, and hold on for the victory.
"We obviously needed one of those," Williams said of the gutsy win. "We've had a lot of gutsy losses. We've had four or five out of seven losses have been right down to the wire and it's a good feeling to be on the winning side of this one."
"We learned how to close out a game tonight which is big," said Rush head coach/GM Derek Keenan. "The effort was outstanding.
"I thought defensively we had very few breakdowns," he added. "It was a really strong effort defensively against a really talented offensive team. We took our pressure game to them and it was a good win."
Besides Williams' and Greer's offensive contributions, Corey Small (2G, 1A) and Scott Evans (2G, 1A) added goals for Edmonton and Ryan Ward had three helpers, while Rhys Duch (1G, 4A), Athan Iannucci (2G,1A), Jeff Zywicki (2G,1A) and Dean Hill (2G) paced the Stealth.
"Zack Greer was dangerous out there tonight and I had a good feeling about him this week. I thought he was pretty tough to stop and he's a dynamic player and we did a good job getting the ball on his stick.
"And even though we only scored ten, same as last week, the offense 100-precent bought into the systems and principles and executed and I thought their goaltender was just outstanding."
Rush netminder Aaron Bold (3-7) stopped 30-of-39 stops for the victory and Tyler Richards had 47 stops on 57 shots in a spectacular losing effort for Washington.
Edmonton started the scoring quickly into the contest as William strolled down the left side and bested Richards just 59-seconds in and the Rush continued the rally 47-seconds later as Greer fired from a similar locale to put the hosts up 2-0.
The Rush power-play surrendered a short-handed tally to Washington but gained redemption moments later when Greer notched his second goal of the night, eight-minutes in, for a 3-1 lead before Washington countered when former Rush forward Hill beat Bold.
Small then dazzled with his stick and footwork and he doubled-dipped and dunked past Richards from in close with 90-seconds left in the opening frame and the Stealth answered back just 24-ticks later to trail Edmonton 4-3.
In the second quarter Washington tied the score 4-4 and went ahead on Hill's second of the night and the Stealth continued the run with a four-on-four goal by Zywicki midway through the stanza as Washington took a 6-4 advantage.
Moments after Edmonton failed to capitalize on the power-play Evans barged in and beat Richards from in tight at 13:10 to make it a one-goal game and then Greer fired his hat-trick marker 77-seconds later to tie the contest at 6-6 into halftime.
The Rush outshot Washington 32-19 in the first half and went 1-4 on the power-play.
Washington grabbed a 7-6 lead 2:20 into the third quarter when Hill notched his third of the night on a delayed penalty call against the Rush and then Greer sniped his fourth of the night as he tip-toed the crease line and fired past Richards to knot the score 7-7 at 4:27.
Edmonton continued to pepper Washington with shots and Small's submarine shot put the Rush up 8-7 before Evans fought off two Stealth defenders and surprised Richards for his second tally of the game at 10:39 to provide the Rush with a two-goal lead after three quarters of play.
The Stealth climbed within one-goal with a power-play marker just over three minutes into the fourth frame before Williams propelled Edmonton to a two-goal bulge, with his second of the night, from atop the crease at 8:23 to make the score 10-8.
Washington's Zywicki scored short-handed with 18-seconds left in the frame, however Edmonton held off the Stealth in the finals seconds for the 10-9 victory.
Edmonton continues its homestand at Rexall Place next Saturday March 31st against the Minnesota Swarm at 7:00 at Crystal Glass Field.
National Lacrosse League Stories from March 25, 2012
- Minnesota Swarm Finishes Four-Game Road Trip with a Loss in Washington - Minnesota Swarm
- Jones' OT Game-Winner Propels Mammoth into Playoffs - Colorado Mammoth
- Hundreds of Dogs Roar into Wells Fargo Center to Cheer on Wings - Philadelphia Wings
- Philadelphia Wings Fall to Mammoth 16-15 in OT Thriller - Philadelphia Wings
- Mammoth Activates All-Star Defenseman Mac Allen - Colorado Mammoth
- Rush snaps losing skid in divisional battle - Edmonton Rush
- Washington Stealth Falls 10-9 in Edmonton, Return Home for Pink in the Rink Tomorrow - Washington Stealth
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