Langley Thunder pulled to within a goal late in the second period, but that was as close as they could got, dropping a 13-11 decision to the host Victoria Shamrocks.
The Thunder were at Victoria’s The Q Centre to kick off the weekend on Friday, and to kick off a two-game Vancouver Island road trip which finished Saturday night in Nanaimo.
After falling behind 5-2 after one in Victoria, Langley cut the deficit to one goal, 8-7, in the late stages of the second.
But Jesse King restored the two-goal advantage prior to intermission and then made it a three-goal game early in the third.
Victoria forged ahead 13-8 with just over six minutes remaining before Langley closed with three goals – but the Thunder could get no closer.
The loss dropped Langley to 4-7-1, while Victoria improved to 7-4 in Western Lacrosse Association action.
Dane Dobbie led the Thunder offence with two goals and five assists and he was one of four Langley players with multiple goals.
Garrett Billings scored three times, Tyler Pace had two goals and four assists, and JP Kealey had two goals and two helpers.
Connor Robinson (one goal, two assists) and Bryce Brochu (one goal, one assist) rounded out the scoring.
King and Casey Jackson led the Shamrocks with four goals and three assists apiece.
Saturday didn’t turn out any better for the team, with the Thunder falling 12-10 to the Nanaimo Timbermen.
Pair of 2-goal losses on the Island road trip as the boys fall 12-10 to @Tmenlax #WLALacrosse #LANvsNAN #ThunderLAX
— Langley Thunder (@ThunderWLA) July 8, 2018
A pair of scoring runs – one in the second and the other in the third – helped the Nanaimo Timbermen send the Langley Thunder home winless from the two-game Vancouver Island road trip.
The Timbermen scored four straight goals to open the second period and then after Langley took a 9-7 lead early in the third, Nanaimo responded with a five-goal burst on their way to a 12-10 win in Western Lacrosse Association action at Nanaimo’s Frank Crane Arena on Saturday night.
The loss – coupled with a 13-11 setback the night before in Victoria – leaves Langley with a 4-8-1 record and the Thunder are two points back of Nanaimo (5-6-1) for the fourth and final playoff spot. Langley has just five games remaining.
Tyler Pace led the Langley offence with two goals and three assists while Connor Robinson (two goals, one assist) also had a multi-goal games. Garrett Billings and Dane Dobbie each had a goal and three assists while Johnny Pearson, Brandon Clelland, Tanner Rennich, and JP Kealey had a goal apiece.
The Thunder led 4-3 after one period. But the Timbermen took control in the second, scoring four of the five goals for a 7-5 advantage after 40 minutes.
Langley had a great start to the third, scoring four goals in the first 5:33 before the Timbermen scored five straight to take the lead for good, said LEC communications manager Gary Ahuja.
Tyler Richards made 38 saves in the loss while Charles Claxton stopped 10 of 11 for the win, replacing Mike DeGirolamo early in the third.
Next up for the Thunder is a home game at Langley Events Centre on Wednesday, July 11 at 7:30 p.m., on the team’s annual Tessa Beauchamp Night. Langley will wear special jerseys that will be auctioned off with the proceeds benefitting the Tessa Beauchamp Foundation.
