OFFICIAL SITE OF THE BC JUNIOR TIER 1
LANGLEY THUNDER
Lakers stun Thunder in third period
Langley Thunder's Dylan Massa (#42) and Owen Van Ryn (#88) double-team Burnaby's Spencer Kaustinen during BC Junior Tier 1 Lacrosse League action at Langley Events on June 2. Ryan Molag photo
They overcame a slow start, but faltered late, dropping an 11-8 decision to the previously winless Burnaby Lakers.
Langley battled back from a 3-0 deficit and led 8-6 early in the third period before the visiting Lakers scored the game's final five goals for an 11-8 victory in BC Junior Tier 1 Lacrosse League action at Langley Events Centre on Tuesday night. The Thunder fell to 4-6 while Burnaby earned their first victory of the season and are now 1-9-1.
"I think the last eight minutes, it was just selfish penalties we can't take," said coach Connar Abrams, referencing a pair of late infractions with his team trailing by a goal and needing to be on the attack rather than defending.
"And the loose balls were all over the place, but no one wanted to pick them up. We were looking for a body or an interference call before actually finding the ball, and those possessions matter."
Logan Claxton led the offence with a hat trick and six points. The captain has now recorded six or more points in three straight games. Dylan Massa (2-1) and Brett Billings each scored twice, while Dallas Kilpatrick (1-1), Cam Smith (0-2) and Owen Van Ryn (0-2) each finished with a pair of points. Hendrix Wenman made 35 saves on 46 shots.
At the other end, Matthew Cabeca turned aside 44 of 52 shots, while Jaken Renschen (4-0) and Pheonix Trolland (3-3) paced the Lakers attack.
Tuesday's game marked the start of a stretch of four games in eight days, a crucial segment of the schedule for a Thunder team looking to climb the standings.
"We talk all the time about this being a young group, and part of growing as a team is learning how to move on quickly from a game like this. We've got Richmond on Thursday, a team we've already faced, so there should be some confidence there," Abrams said. "Then on Sunday we see Nanaimo for the first time, so we need to make sure we're focused, prepared and ready to go for both games."
The Thunder return to action on Thursday in Richmond before hosting Nanaimo on Sunday afternoon.
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