Logan Schuss snapped out of his scoring slump to lead the Vancouver Stealth to a 15-11 win over the Roughnecks on Saturday at the Langley Events Centre.
After failing to score in three straight games, Schuss found the back of the net five times – including twice in the fourth quarter in which Vancouver outscored Calgary 6-2 – as the Stealth (7-9) beat the Roughnecks (7-10) for the third time in four games this season.
Curtis Dickson had five goals and an assist to give him 51 goals and 102 points this season with one game remaining for the Riggers on Saturday, April 19 at the Scotiabank Saddledome against the Saskatchewan Rush.
To qualify for the National Lacrosse League playoffs, Calgary will need some help. They’ll have to hope that Vancouver loses at home to the Colorado Mammoth next Saturday and then to the New England Black Wolves the following weekend on the road. They’ll also have to defeat the Rush in their final game to finish ahead of the Stealth in the West Division standings.
Wesley Berg and Tyler Digby both put up two goals and an assist for the ’Necks, while Dane Dobbie (1g, 3a), Riley Loewen (1g, 2a), Holden Cattoni (5a) and Jeff Shattler (4a) also had multiple-point performances.
Goalie Frank Scigliano finished with 43 saves in the Calgary net.
Rhys Duch scored twice and set up seven goals for the Stealth, Joel McCready had two goals and an assist, while Matt Beers, Cliff Smith, Justin Salt, Evan Messenger, James Rahe and Jordan Durston also scored.
Tye Belanger was solid in between the pipes for the Stealth as he stopped 39 of 50 shots he faced.
The Riggers jumped out to a 2-1 lead on goals by Dickson and Berg before Beers and Duch answered back to give the Stealth a one-goal advantage.
Digby then scored a late goal in the first quarter before Dickson counted his second goal of the contest at 1:50 of the second.
After Schuss scored a power-play marker for Vancouver, Dickson fired a pair of goals in 38 seconds to give him 50 on the season while putting the ’Necks up 6-4.
Salt rounded out the first-half scoring at 11:11 when he took a breakaway pass from Curtis Hodgson before snapping a shot past Scigliano.
Digby and Berg counted back-to-back short-handed goals 82 seconds apart early in the third quarter before Vancouver answered back with a four goal run – two by Schuss and one each off the stick of McCready and Messenger.
Dobbie scored with 23 seconds left in the third before Duch responded for the Stealth 33 seconds into the fourth.
After Dickson notched his fifth goal of the game at 2:20 of the final frame to pull Calgary into a 10-10 tie, McCready and Schuss counted back-to-back markers for Vancouver to put the Stealth ahead for good.
Loewen pulled the Riggers back within a goal before Smith, Schuss and Durston scored to put the game away for Vancouver.
