Winning Has Become a Habit for the Steelhawks

(Photo courtesy of Jay Saucier)

With the Arena Lacrosse League playoffs on the horizon, the Whitby Steelhawks continue their ascent in the league standings. Their latest victory occurred Saturday evening at Children’s Arena when a short-staffed Paris RiverWolves team left the rink on the losing end of a 21-6 final.

Behind the bench, Brad Reed took the reins for Whitby as head coach Ryan Degerdon was under the weather. On the other side, Jamie Dubrick and Chris Driscoll looked for any spark from their roster of 13 runners and two net-minders. Once the dust settled, the Steelhawks record stood at 9-3, good for first overall. In second place are the defending champion, Brampton Express at 9-2 with a game in hand. The RiverWolves, on the other hand, at 3-9 are bottom of the pack with a pair of games to play. This season, the top two teams in the eight-team league receive a bye for the opening playoff round while the two teams at the bottom won’t feature in post-season play.

It was the Steelhawks who drew first blood as Justin Bragg opened his account with his first just two minutes into the contest. Just under 10 seconds later, Quinn Hyland opened the gap for Whitby before Liam Osborne, with his first of five on the night, stretched the lead further. Osborne’s first goal was a rocket from the left side after receiving a well-timed pass from Brayden MacGregor. Whitby took a 5-2 lead into the second quarter with the RiverWolves doing their best to keep pace.

The RiverWolves closed the gap to two goals twice in the second quarter, but it would get no closer. Parker Pipher got into the action with a nice diving shot in front of the crease to extend the lead to 7-4 with half of the 15-minute quarter remaining. A four-goal unanswered run by the Steelhawks ultimately overwhelmed the visitors and at the half-time buzzer the homeside enjoyed a 12-5 lead.

The limited roster would become an issue for the visitors over the second half of the contest. A tired and at times dejected team could only muster one goal in the final 30 minutes of the game. Alternatively, the Steelhawks offensive machine added four goals in the third quarter and five in the last 15 minutes to take the 21-6 win. It was Osborne, with his fourth, that opened the scoring for the Steelhawks in the third quarter. Despite some penalty trouble for the Steelhawks in that third quarter, the Pipher brothers each notched a short-handed marker. First up, Parker fired one home and not to be outdone by his younger brother, Devin added one on the same Whitby penalty. A late goal by Paris and it was 16-6 with 15-minutes remaining.

The final quarter ended with five unanswered goals by the Steelhawks to lock this one down by a 21-6 final. With five minutes to go in the contest, Osborne scored his fifth of the night and the final goal of the game, giving him a seven-point night.

“We knew they were short-handed tonight but at the same time we knew there were only so many games left before the playoffs, so we had to take care of this one,” said Osborne.

“There are a number of guys on this team who have been on  championship sides before and who know what it takes to win.  This group of guys from the back all the way to the offense is geared towards winning and I think we have what it takes to get back to the top this year,” added Osborne.

Osborne earned first star honours with his performance. Parker Pipher with three goals and six assists and brother Devin with a pair of goals and seven assists were second and third stars, respectively. Three goals for recent returnee, Tyler Goodchild, a pair each for Quinn Hyland and Jonah Kerr and singles to Bragg, Brayden MacGregor and Jordan Stouros rounded out the scoring.

The Steelhawks have two more regular season games on the schedule. They will visit the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena on Sunday March 8 at 1 pm for a game against the Six Nations Snipers. Following that they finish at home on Saturday March 14 at 1 pm when the Toronto Monarchs are the opponents.