Stealth’s dynamic duo

Any Washington Stealth fan who has glanced at a list of the National Lacrosse League’s scoring leaders in the past year or so likely has encountered at least two familiar names.

Forwards Rhys Duch and Lewis Ratcliff have made a habit of being at or near the top of that list.

The Stealt

h’s dynamic duo were only part of the reason Washington made a run to the NLL championship a year ago — but they were a really big part.

Washington acquired the left-handed Ratcliff before the 2010 season in a trade that sent one of the best players in NLL history, Colin Doyle, to the Toronto Rock. But Ratcliff wasted little time fitting in, scoring 97 points (46 goals, 51 assists) to finish second in the NLL. His 46 goals led the league.

“When we traded for Lewis to get him from Toronto, it was really the only thing for us to do at that time,” Stealth coach Chris Hall said. “We knew we were giving up a huge piece in Colin Doyle. When Colin expressed an interest to get back closer to home, there was really only one person that we had our eye on and that was Lewis.”

This season, Ratcliff has picked up where he left off. His 67 points rank third in the NLL and his 27 goals are seventh. “Barring injury, Lewis can be a star in this league for a decade and beyond,” Hall said.

Winning is paramount for both Duch and Ratcliff, but scoring is important, too.

“I think (scoring) is important to both of us to a certain extent,” Ratcliff said. “It means both of us are doing our job. If I am not putting up points, than I am not doing my job, so it is pretty important to me.”

Duch, a right-hander, joined the Stealth organization as the third overall selection in the 2008 NLL Entry Draft.

“When the opportunity came at draft time and he was on the table, there was really no choice,” Hall said. “There was only one choice and it was Rhys.”

Much like Ratcliff, Duch has lived up to expectations.

In the Stealth’s run to the championship a year ago, Duch scored 86 points (33 goals and 53 assists) in the regular season, good for seventh in the league. His 33 goals ranked 12th. Duch also ranked seventh in the league in scoring in 2009 with 89 points (35 goals, 54 assists).

“The job of the offensive guys is to put points on the board,” Duch said.

Duch has done that again this season. His 63 points (30 goals, 33 assists) are good for seventh in the league. His 30 goals are tied for second in the NLL with Boston’s Casey Powell.

“I’m always looking for ways to alter my game and look for different ways to create an opportunity for myself,” Duch said.

One of the most exciting moments of Duch’s career came one week ago when he scored a goal as time expired to beat the Boston Blazers. Duch’s goal came from 30 feet out on a 5-on-3 power play. Even more amazing, the play started with just 1.8 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. The win clinched a playoff berth for the Stealth.

“I’d definitely put it in (my) top five lacrosse moments,” Duch said, “it was a pretty cool feeling.”

Ratcliff said the goal was typical of Duch.

“You give Rhys that much time, it doesn’t matter if there is one second left, he is going to score,” Ratcliff said.

Duch’s goal may have been the game winner, but it might not have been the most exciting play of the game. The Stealth welcomed back defenseman Kyle Sorensen from injury for the game against Boston. With the score tied 7-7, Sorensen stole the ball from Boston’s Josh Sanderson and ran the length of the floor, beating Blazers goalkeeper Anthony Cosmo to put the Stealth ahead 8-7.

Duch said he would give the play of the game to Sorensen.

“Mine was pretty standard, I just caught the ball and shot it,” Duch said. “He was fighting off defenders and checks — I would have to give it to him.”

For all of the dynamic duos’ offensive prowess, having other offensive threats in the Stealth lineup — including Jeff Zywicki and Luke Wiles — makes their jobs easier. “They can’t just focus on shutting Lewis down or shutting me down,” Duch said.

Despite all the goals, what matters most to both players is winning.

“At the end of the day, that is all that matters,” Ratcliff said. “Who cares if I score 100 points if we only win two games?”