Late surge gives Stealth a 10-8 win

Published 10:31 pm Saturday, February 5, 2011

DENVER, Colo. — A run of four unanswered goals late in the fourth quarter helped the Washington Stealth salvage a 10-8 National Lacrosse League win over the Colorado Mammoth on Saturday night.

After more than 50 minutes of rather pedestrian offense from a struggling Stealth squad, forward Luke Wiles jumpstarted a rally by scoring with 9 minutes, 40 seconds to play.

Colorado (1-4 overall) took an 8-6 advantage with two straight to open the final quarter, but following Wiles’ goal, Stealth forward Tom Johnson netted the equalizer with 3:12 remaining after a nice passing combination.

Two more goals within the minute — one from Wiles and the final tally from forward Cam Sedgwick — allowed the Stealth (3-3) to silence the crowd of 14,091 fans and send Colorado to its 11th straight home loss.

Stealth goaltender Tyler Richards put in his best performance of the season with 52 saves, including 33 in the first half as the Mammoth peppered the net from all angles.

Richards worked overtime as Washington allowed nine power-play opportunities to Colorado; the Mammoth converted four while the Stealth went 1-for-5 on their own man-advantages.

Wiles finished with three goals and one assist; Johnson netted two goals and Rhys Duch scored two goals and one assist for the Stealth.

Washington scored three straight to grab a 6-4 lead with 5:41 remaining in the third quarter, but a four-goal rally by Colorado allowed the Mammoth to take an 8-6 lead with 12:08 to play.

John Grant Jr. scored his third goal of the game to put Colorado up by two in the fourth. Brian Langtry finished with two goals and three assists for the Mammoth.

Colorado out-shot Washington 60-52, but the Stealth owned the fourth quarter with a 22-14 advantage on shots.

In the face-off circle, Stealth practice roster signee Bob Snider won 14 of 23 draws (60.8 percent) and provided Washington with crucial possessions to help spark the late comeback. Snider also led the team by corralling 13 loose balls.

Transition Ilija Gajic had 15 loose balls for Colorado.

Forward Lewis Ratcliff, who was held goalless in a loss to Minnesota last week, scored a short-handed goal with 1:19 to play until halftime to knot the game up at 3-3 — his only goal of the game.

Following a slow start awash with penalties called on each side, Duch finally netted the game’s first goal 8:48 into the opening period.

Washington is on the road for the fourth straight game, playing at Edmonton on Friday at 6 p.m. before returning home Saturday to face the Rush at 7:30 p.m. in the second game of a weekend doubleheader.

Stealth 10, Mammoth 8

Washington 1 2 3 4 — 10

Colorado 0 3 3 2 — 8

1st Quarter—1, Washington, R. Duch 14 (C. Sedgwick), 8:48 (pp). Penalties-E. Martin Was (cross checking), 3:20; P. Rabil Was (holding), 6:28; C. Hodgson Was (slashing), 7:43; J. Grant Col (checking from behind), 8:26; J. Park Col (holding), 8:26; served by C. O’Dougherty Was (illegal substitution), 9:40; J. Park Col (holding), 12:53; J. Bloom Was (cross checking), 14:09; M. Allen Col (roughing), 14:09; C. O’Dougherty Was (roughing), 14:58.

2nd Quarter—2, Colorado, B. Langtry 7 (M. McLellan), 1:41 (pp). 3, Colorado, J. Shewchuk 5 (B. Langtry, M. McLellan), 6:18 (pp). 4, Washington, E. Martin 1 (C. Sedgwick), 10:09. 5, Colorado, J. Grant 10 (B. Langtry, A. Gajic), 11:52. 6, Washington, L. Ratcliff 11 13:41 (sh). Penalties-K. Hartzell Was (holding), 6:04; served by J. Prossner Col (illegal substitution), 7:31; L. Wiles Was (slashing), 8:24; J. Gallant Col (slashing), 8:24; C. McElroy Was (holding), 13:09.

3rd Quarter—7, Colorado, J. Grant 11 (B. Langtry), 2:36 (pp). 8, Washington, L. Wiles 10 4:19. 9, Washington, R. Duch 15 (J. Moleski, T. Richards), 5:13. 10, Washington, T. Johnson 6 (R. Duch, P. Rabil), 9:19. 11, Colorado, A. Gajic 5 (J. Shewchuk, J. Grant), 10:45 (pp). 12, Colorado, C. Smith 7 (J. Prossner, J. Gallant), 12:12. Penalties-T. Johnson Was (interference on goalie), 1:38; C. Conn Was (cross checking), 9:41; N. Carlson Col (holding), 13:15.

4th Quarter—13, Colorado, B. Langtry 8 (J. Grant, J. Shewchuk), 1:53. 14, Colorado, J. Grant 12 (D. Carey), 2:52. 15, Washington, L. Wiles 11 (M. Grimes), 5:20. 16, Washington, T. Johnson 7 (L. Wiles), 11:48. 17, Washington, L. Wiles 12 (T. Johnson), 12:18. 18, Washington, C. Sedgwick 4 (L. Ratcliff, J. Moleski), 12:48. Penalties-No Penalties

Shots on Goal—Washington 10-11-9-22-52. Colorado 16-19-11-14-60.

Power Play Opportunities—-Washington 1-for-5; Colorado 4-for-9.

Faceoffs—Washington 14-for-23; Colorado 9-for-23.

Goalies—Washington, Richards 1-1-0 (60 shots-52 saves). Colorado, Levis 1-3-0 (52 shots-42 saves).

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