Comeback bid falls short as Thunder drop back-to-back weekend games

Langley's Nigel Nowak clears the front of the net during BC Junior A Lacrosse League action at Langley Events Centre on Sunday (June 7) afternoon. Gary Ahuja photo

Glass half empty: the Langley Junior A Thunder have dropped back-to-back games for the first time this season (excluding a tie last month).

Glass half full: at the midway point of the BC Junior A Lacrosse League season, the team sits at 6-2-1.

The Thunder fell 9-8 in overtime to the Victoria Shamrocks on Saturday before dropping an 9-7 decision to the visiting Nanaimo Timbermen on Sunday afternoon at Langley Events Centre. The losses came as Langley played three games in less than 72 hours.

Langley got off to a great start as Mason Eastgate scored twice in a span of less than a minute. But Nanaimo responded with four straight goals before Brayden Longacre cut the deficit to 4-3 ahead of intermission.

The Thunder offence then went silent, enduring a 28:49 scoring drought before Cam Smith finally found the back of the net early in the third period to make it 7-4. After Nanaimo got that goal back, Jacob Glass tallied twice and Coody Todd made it 8-7 with 65 seconds to play.

Langley had a golden opportunity to tie the game, but Eastgate was turned aside on a penalty shot with 21 seconds remaining. The Timbermen then tacked on an empty netter for the final score.

“They had a pretty sharp goalie tonight,” said Langley assistant coach Adam Charalambides.

“I really liked our process. I thought we were grinding hard,” Charalambides said. “Some nights you need a little puck luck. Sometimes it goes post-out, and some nights it goes post-in.

“There was no shortage of guys willing to get to the middle, get to the gritty areas, set physical picks and go inside. We just didn't get the finishing luck we wanted, but I really liked our process, our will and our grit.”

Despite the loss, Charalambides did see positives they can take.

“There's a lot of good character things to pull out of it. In sport, you hate silver linings because you want to win games,” he said.

“But we showed resilience in the third period with a big push. Had that push come in the second period, I think we come out of that game on top.

“I liked our grit. Nobody quit, we played all the way to the end and it was just an unlucky result.”

Despite the recent losses, the Thunder sit second in the B.C. Junior A Lacrosse League standings at the midway point of the 18-game regular season, and Charalambides likes what he has seen from his team.

“I'm a process focused guy so I'm really just worried about the amount of quality opportunities that we get on the front door and how we're playing on the back door,” he said.

Eastgate and Glass led Langley with two goals and two assists apiece, while Parker Doyle chipped in three assists. Caleb Khan made 38 saves on 46 shots.

For Nanaimo, Bostyn MacDonald stopped 39 of 46 shots, while Ethan Gordon (2-2), Daniel O'Leary (2-1) and Tysen Fontenla (2-1) each scored twice. The win was the first of the season for the Timbermen who are now 1-7.

Against the Shamrocks on Saturday at Victoria's Q Centre, Langley surrendered six first-period goals but battled back to take an 8-7 lead.

Victoria, however, tied the game late in regulation before Carter Quested scored the overtime winner for the home side.

Kade Hoogstraten led Langley with a goal and four assists, while Jacob Glass and Parker Doyle each had two goals and an assist. Austin Vanichuk finished with a goal and two assists, while Koji Okuyama and Zekie Terry added a goal apiece.

Marcus Khan made 38 saves as the Shamrocks outshot the Thunder 47-40.

Up next for the Thunder is another home game on Thursday (June 11) against the Delta Islanders at Langley Events Centre. Game time is 7:30pm.

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