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Swarm boosts playoff hopes, wins 9-7

April 5, 2009 - National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Minnesota Swarm News Release


St. Paul, MN - The Minnesota Swarm (6-8) ended its three-game winless streak and boosted its playoff hopes with a 9-7 win over the Edmonton Rush (5-9) Saturday night in front of 12,476 at the Xcel Energy Center. F Chad Culp had four points (1-3=4) including the game-winning goal, F Aaron Wilson led the team with two goals, and G Kevin Croswell made 46 saves in the victory. F Dan Teat led Edmonton with five points (0-5=5) and G Chris Levis made 40 saves in the loss.

"It feels great, we knew it was going to be a battle and that's exactly what it was," said Head Coach Duane Jacobs. "Both teams put together a solid game and we were able to get some timely goals, it was just a great team win."

Minnesota and Edmonton entered the game tied for fifth in the West Division, just half a game behind San Jose for the fourth and final playoff spot. The Swarm took control in shots early, out-shooting Edmonton 12-7 in the first quarter, but goals came at a premium as F Ryan Sharp scored the only goal of the quarter for Minnesota 57 seconds into the game. F Mike Hominuck responded at 4:03 and the teams headed to the second quarter in a 1-1 tie.

Edmonton took a 2-1 lead at 1:02 as F Jamie Floris scored his 11th goal of the season, but Minnesota responded. F Sean Pollock tied the score at 2:55 on the power-play, followed by F Ryan Ward's 20th goal of the season at 11:50. The Swarm was unable to extend its lead though as the game remained tight. F Callum Crawford scored short-handed at 13:45 to tie the score at three heading into halftime.

With playoff positioning on the line, the see-saw battle continued as neither team was able to take control. The teams exchanged three goals in the third quarter with F Josh Funk, F Kevin Ross and F Ryan Cousins scoring for Minnesota. The Swarm was unable to extend its lead beyond one, however as the Rush responded after each Swarm goal and the teams headed to the fourth quarter tied at six.

Minnesota started strong in the fourth quarter as Wilson scored just 43 seconds into the fourth quarter. After Crawford again tied the game at 5:45, the Swarm opened the door for Edmonton to take the lead as F Travis Hill was sent to the penalty box for roughing. Croswell quickly became the story of the game though for Minnesota in his first start since February 28th at Buffalo. Croswell stood strong as Edmonton was unable to score on the power-play. "It felt great getting back in there," Croswell said. "It's been awhile but waited my time out and got in there and showed what I can do."

After the successful penalty kill, Culp scored the eventual game-winning-goal at 9:24. Then at 10:08, Floris was given a 5-minute major for high sticking, giving Minnesota a chance to seal the game on the power-play. At 11:48 Wilson scored his second of the game to give Minnesota a 9-7 lead. Minnesota sealed the strong special teams win with a penalty kill to end the game. "We've been spending a lot of time on the special teams, tonight it was about time we were able to come through in the fourth quarter at both ends," Jacobs said. "A lot of time, a lot of work and hopefully that can be a big part in the last two games." Wilson (2-1=3), Pollock (1-2=3) and Ross (1-2=3) all finished with three points for Minnesota. Edmonton out-shot Minnesota 53-49 on the night but went 0-4 on the power-play; Minnesota finished 2-5 on the night.

The Swarm returns to action next Saturday as it hosts the Portland LumberJax, 7:00 PM at the Xcel Energy Center. Swarm single game tickets are on sale now at the Xcel Energy Center Box Office and all Ticketmaster locations, by calling 888-MN-SWARM or by visiting www.mnswarm.com. Swarm Single game tickets are available in all price categories and range from $13.00 to $65.00.

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