The final game of the Premier Lacrosse League’s Denver weekend was another marquee matchup. The first place Whipsnakes took on another playoff contender in Archers. Another barn burner of a game resulted in Whipsnakes continuing their winning ways, dropping Archers 13-11.
Matt Moore opened the scoring quickly for Archers with a snipe just inside the arc. Joe Nardella answered right back on the ensuing faceoff. Nardella won the draw, drove right in, and scored. The first quarter in this one was pretty much every other type scoring. Brad Smith and Marcus Holman traded goals. Next was Zed Williams and Connor Fields trading. Matt Rambo notched two, and Grant Ament got one to make it 5-4 Whips after one.
Whipsnakes went on a three-goal run to start the second. Smith got goals two and three, and Rambo got his hat trick as well. Ament got his second with under two minutes to make it 8-5 Whips going into the half. It should be noted that there was an almost two-hour long weather delay in the middle of the second quarter.
Head coach of Whipsnakes Jim Stagnitta commented on his team’s performance coming out of the delay.
“I think we cleaned it up on defense” he stated. “Offensively, we’re getting what we want. I think we’re getting some really good opportunities.”
The third quarter began and the Whips just stayed on the Archers. The Whipsnakes are notorious for winning close or one-goal games and doing just enough to keep their opponents on the losing end. Williams got his second, but was answered by two straight from Archers, one from Jeff Trainor and one from Ryan Ambler. The Whips answered with two more of their own. Rambo with his fourth and Mike Chanenchuk with his first. Right there is a proven point. Any time Archers gained any ground on the scoreboard, Whipsnakes had an answer. 11-7 Whips going into the fourth.
Chanenchuk got his second to open the fourth. Ambler answered right back. Keegan Khan got his first of the game at the 6:21 mark in the frame. Archers made it interesting at the end, with a two-pointer from Holman and a powerplay goal by Will Manny. However, that was as close as they would get. Your final, 13-11 Whipsnakes.
“I thought we played pretty good for four quarters, even with the rain delay,” said Matt Rambo after the game. “I thought everyone played great. We’re just happy with another win, and we’ll see what happens next week.”
Players of the game for Archers were Holman (four points), Ament (2+1) and Manny (1+2). Brett Dobson had a solid game, considering he was going up against the league’s top team. He made 14 saves with a 52% save percentage. As for Whipsnakes, Rambo (four goals), Smith (3+1) and Williams (2+2) led the way. Nardella going 20-26 on faceoffs certainly helped as well. Oh, and let’s not forget Kyle Bernlohr. The stud goaltender had quite the game, making 12 saves with a 55% save percentage.
Whipsnakes just keep on rolling. They go into Salt Lake next week riding high and looking to continue their winning ways. Whips take on Atlas August 12th at 8 p.m. As for the Archers, they’re still in decent shape in the standings. They go in next week to take on Chaos August 13th at 3 p.m.
Zions Bank Stadium will be rocking next week for some Week 10 Premier Lacrosse League action. The season is winding down, buckle up.
