Stifling at one end of the floor and persistent at the other, the New Westminster Salmonbellies delivered a well-rounded exhibition of power lacrosse Saturday in knocking off the Peterborough Lakers 13-8 at Queen's Park Arena.
The victory gave the host 'Bellies a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Mann Cup championship. Game 3 is slated for Monday, 7:30 p.m. in New West.
Proving that more is better, New West repeated its fast start from Game 1, but this time maintaining the forward attack to the tune of 5-0 before the game was seven minutes old. Up 6-1 after 20 minutes -- despite being outshot 21-18 -- the B.C. champs grew their advantage to 8-1 before the midpoint of the game, and weathered a Peterborough flurry that pulled the visitors to within four.
But whenever the Lakers put together a drive, like collecting three straight as the contest moved past the halfway point, New West struck back. Goals by Brandon Goodwin and Connor Robinson, scored 1:19 apart late in the second period, threw cold water on the Ontario squad's rally. With four seconds left in the frame and netminder Matt Vinc on the bench for an extra attacker, Adam Jones counted the Lakers' fifth goal and closed the gap to five.
New West replied with force, putting three more on the board to start the third, including a pair by Mitch Jones, to build an insurmountable lead that the Lakers could only put a minor dent in with three late markers before time ran out.
In the late stages of the game tempers flared up, as Jones answered a challenge from the Lakers' Bryce Sweeting moments after he scored his second goal of the series, while Clayton Richardson mixed it up with Peterborough's Shawn Evans.
Netminder and player of the game Alexis Buque set the tone in Game 2, kicking out 51 shots, including 35 over the first two periods. At the other end, the 'Bellies attackers chased Peterborough starter Evan Kirk from the cage, scoring on six of 13 shots before Vinc replaced him.
New West's Robinson, a graduating junior call-up, pocketed three goals and two assists on the night, while teammates Kevin Crowley and Logan Schuss joined Goodwin and Jones with a pair each. Joel McCready and Anthony Malcom chipped in singles.
The Lakers were led offensively by Adam Jones, who scored three times. New West's defence held Curtis Dickson, who scored four goals in Game 1, and Evans without a goal.
The series continues Monday, 7:30 p.m. at Queen's Park Arena. Game 4 goes Tuesday, and Game 5, if necessary, on Wednesday. If needed, Games 6 and 7 will be played Sept. 15 and 16. All games start at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at www.wlalacrosse.com.
