(Rochester, NY)… The Rochester Knighthawks’ comeback bid fell one goal short Saturday night, dropping a 16-15 decision to the Vancouver Warriors at Rogers Arena. It was their second setback against Vancouver in as many weeks. The Knighthawks now own a 4-4 record.
Rochester roared back in the second half, outscoring the Warriors 8-3 over the final 30 minutes. The Knighthawks scored five times in the fourth quarter to get within one with under two minutes to play, but their last chance was turned aside in the final seconds.
The Knighthawks were led by a 10-point effort from reigning MVP Connor Fields (5+5), while Ryan Lanchbury posted nine (2+7). Lanchbury also hit a milestone, recording his 200th career assist. Ryan Smith contributed three goals and two assists, and Zed Williams chipped in three assists. Riley Hutchcraft stopped 14 of 19 shots as he relieved starter Rylan Hartley. Jeremy Thompson won 20 faceoffs to surpass 2,600 wins in his career.
Unlike the first meeting, Rochester got going offensively early. It was a shootout from the opening faceoff as the teams combined for 12 goals in the first 15 minutes, with Vancouver rallying to take a 7-5 lead. Jake Piseno scored on the team’s first shot of the game just 14 seconds into the contest to give the Knighthawks a 1-0 lead. After the Warriors tied the game, Lanchbury, Graydon Hogg, and Smith notched goals to make it 4-1 early in the first. Vancouver posted its second goal, only to have Fields rip a shot past Christian Del Bianco at 6:48 to give the Knighthawks back their three-goal advantage.
Vancouver, however, responded with a seven-goal run to move ahead 9-5. Jessie King scored three straight goals to tie the contest at five late in the first. He then assisted on the next four goals as they powered their way to a four-goal lead. Curtis Dickson extended the run to five goals with a pair of tallies just 42 seconds apart to give the Warriors a 7-5 edge after the first. His second goal was the first of three straight power-play tallies by Vancouver.
Fields ended the Vancouver run with his second of the contest. The power-play goal made it 9-6 at 9:17 of the second quarter. After another Warriors’ goal, Hogg then posted his second of the game to get within three at 10-7. The Warriors ended the first half on a 3-0 run to take a 13-7 lead. That set the stage for a wild second half.
Rochester opened the third by scoring a pair of goals 24 seconds apart to get within four at 13-9. Fields completed the hat trick 23 seconds into the third, and Smith followed at the 57-second mark. At 9:44, Smith completed his hat trick by finishing from in tight to make it 14-10. Vancouver would tack on one more to close out the third, up 15-10.
But Rochester was not done and dominated the final 15 minutes. Quick strikes by Fields and Lanchbury in the opening minute pulled Rochester within three. Keegan Bal scored Vancouver’s last goal of the game at 5:23 to give the Warriors a 16-12 advantage. Rochester would continue to press as Thomas McConvey scored shorthanded and Kyle Waters ripped a shot in with 3:57 left to bring the Knighthawks closer. Fields then buried his own rebound with 1:50 remaining to get within one at 16-15. Yet, the Knighthawks could not get the equalizer to force overtime.
The Knighthawks will return home on Saturday, Feb. 14, for a 7 p.m. Valentine’s Day date with the Ottawa Black Bears. The first 1,000 fans will receive an NLL sticker book, courtesy of TFL Sports.