Derek Grimm’s disappointment following an 18-7 loss to the Kelowna Raiders was evident as he was angry in his team’s play.
“It was a heartbreaker knowing we just quit in the second and handed it to them on a platter,” said Grimm, an alternate captain for the South Okanagan Flames.
The Flames are now 2-2-0 in Thompson Okanagan Junior Lacrosse League after hosting the Raiders at Memorial Arena on Monday. The pounding the Flames took began after their top player Brad Deshane was ejected for a hit at the bench during a line change. New league rules state that any player making contact with an opponent going off will be automatically ejected.
“We couldn’t get back from it,” said Grimm. “We just fell apart in the second period.”
When the Raiders made it 11-4, Flames coach Tony Ramsay made the decision to pull Dean Grimm, who had a meltdown following the goal, and replaced him with Brad Stel.
“They played better in the third period but the second period they let their goalie down and weren’t taking the body,” said Ramsay. “A lot of them were going after the stick.”
While the Raiders poured on the offence that period, the Flames continued to push and generate their own chances. Ramsay felt the main problem was their defence wasn’t tight enough. It improved in the third period as the Flames were only outscored 4-2. However, Ramsay wants to see that effort for 60 minutes.
Grimm said they need to stay calm to avoid the mental mistakes. Part of what frustrated Grimm is entering the game they had a good feeling about winning.
“We thought we could show the other teams that we could play with them but it just didn’t come out how we expected,” said Grimm, who is still confident they can defeat the Raiders.
The Flames received offence from Liam Neary and Chris Pond with two goals, and singles by Mitch Walton, Jacob Hollenbeck and Chris Johnson. On the weekend, the Flames lost to the Vernon Tigers 13-7. Scoring for the Flames were Deshane with a hat trick and added two assists, Ryan Harms with two goals and singles by Walton and Pond.
The Flames’ next host the Armstrong Shamrocks at Memorial Arena on
May 16 at 7:30 p.m.
