SIX NATIONS — Since losing a heart breaker at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena (ILA) after three overtime periods, the Six Nations Pro-Fit Chiefs evened the best of seven series against the Oakville Rock but it took more OT to do it.
The Chiefs won Game 2, 14-11, after dropping Game 1, 8-7.
The Chiefs were charged for Game 2 and rung up a 4-2 first period lead with Randy Staats, Craig Point, Jeremy Thompson and Ryan Benesch doing the honours for Six Nations.
Oakville would not let that stand and pushed back, hard, in the second. Benesch scored his second of the game to open the period on a powerplay from Staats and Point but Oakville began chipping away at the Chiefs’ 5-2 lead.
Wesley Berg and Mitch Desnoo brought the Rock back to the table scoring 32 seconds apart. Randy Staats got that one back but the Rock notched two more quick ones before Staats scored his third of the game and Oakville’s Eric Fannell closed the frame with six seconds left on the clock to tie the score at 7-7.
There was an explosion of goals in the early third period with each team trading three goals apiece. Both Brandon Miller and Nick Rose bricked up their nets in the second half of the period and held ground at 10-10 forcing the 10-minute OT period.
Randy Staats put the Oakville Rock ahead, 55 seconds into the extra time.
Tuesday night, Aug.1, the Six Nations Pro-Fit Chiefs and the Oakville Rock went three OT periods before Wesley Berg decided Game 1 of the best-of-seven Major Series Lacrosse semi-final at the ILA.
In total, Six Nations’ Dillon Ward was forced to handle 73 shots on goal while Nick Rose faced 54 Chiefs’ shots.
Vaughn Harris and Kyle Jackson scored for Six Nations while Dan Lomas and Bradley Kri scored for the Rock to complete the first period, tied at 2-2.
Brett Hickey took an Oakville lead at 7:31 of the second period but Jackson answered with a short hander with Mike McNamara serving time for slashing. Hickey wrestled the lead back a minute later and it was a 4-3 game in favour of the Rock.
Dan Dawson and James Barclay did battle at 12:27 instigated by a Barclay high stick with both combatants being tossed from the game.
Shortly after the fur stopped flying, Ryan Benesch, Randy Staats s cored in quick succession to take the lead back.
Harris was gifted with a penalty shot at 17:46 for a Chiefs’ lead, at 6-4, but right off the ensuing faceoff, Rob Hellyer scored at 18:22 to co0m-lete the second period with the Pro-Fit Chiefs holding a slim 6-5 lead.
The Rock evened the score again early in the third period that Jordan Durston got back from Dhane Smith to take the lead back. The Chiefs couldn’t protect the lead and at 14:20, Oakville and Six Nations were tied at 7-7 with just shy of five minutes to go in regulation time.
That would be the last goal before Berg ended the marathon at 2:25 for the Oakville win.
The series continues Tuesday night at the ILA, at 8 p.m. The parody between these two teams should make the rest of the best-of-seven semi-final series as exciting as the first two.
Some are predicting a Game 7 to determine a winner, judging by the first two games. The winner will face the victors of the Peterborough versus Brooklin series, which is also tied at one game apiece. The next game in that coupling is set for Tuesday night as well. Results from both games will miss our deadline.
