A’s ready to move on following lopsided loss
The St. Catharines WMKL Athletics fell into a deep hole early and never recovered, dropping a 16-4 decision to the Orangeville Northmen Sunday night in Orangeville in the opener of their best-of-five Ontario Junior Lacrosse League semifinal playoff series.
The A’s fell behind 7-1 after 20 minutes and trailed 13-3 after two.
“I think going into Orangeville’s arena is always a tough place to play,” A’s general manager Jeff Chcoski said. “I think we were probably a little high off the Burlington series.”
Game 2 goes Wednesday night in St. Catharines at 8 p.m.
“I think we have to put this one behind us at this point and stay positive,” Chcoski said. “We’ve beat Orangeville in our rink before and I think we can beat them again in our rink.”
Chcoski is confident the team can turn the page.
“It was a quiet bus ride home. There was a lot of reflection and the guys are going to do some video today and get healed up a little bit and be ready to rock and roll Wednesday,” he said. “You have to somehow put it in the rearview mirror and mentally and physically prepare for Wednesday.”
Keaton Zavitz had a pair of goals for the A’s while Tye Steenhuis and Thunder Hill also scored. Zackary Toll assisted on all four goals.
The Northmen, who swept Toronto Beaches 3-0 in the quarter-finals, were led by Joey Spallina (5-5) and Liam Matthews (2-8).
“They are a really good lacrosse team from top to bottom,” Chcoski said. “They made a couple of big trades right at the end and put a lot into it. Their offence is big and strong, the defence fast and tough and they picked up Patty O’Toole and he’s a really good goalie and they’re also coached well.”
Game 3 is Saturday at Orangeville at 7 p.m. Game 4, if necessary, Monday, July 29 at St. Catharines at 8 p.m. Game 5, if necessary, Tuesday, July 30 at Orangeville at 8 p.m.
Dear reader. If you liked this story or one of the 6,100 other stories found on our website, please consider hitting the Support Us button on the right-hand side of our home page and making a PayPal contribution to our website. Your support would be much appreciated. If you are a business owner, please consider advertising on our site. Our rates are reasonable and we provide plenty of exposure for your business. Contact bpotrecz@outlook.com for more information.
