Shamrocks Force Third and Deciding Game at Minto Cup

Shawn Slaght

I've been a professional journalist since 2005 and I've covered sports across Saskatchewan and Alberta including World Cup Alpine Skiing, national and world curling championships and junior hockey. I've been covering lacrosse and the Saskatchewan Rush since 2017.

August 23, 2026

*Photo credit: National Junior A Lacrosse Championship of Canada on Facebook*

The 2026 Minto Cup championship will come down to a third and deciding game.

Facing a do-or-die scenario, the Victoria Shamrocks picked up a 14-6 win over the Raiders Lacrosse Club out of Alberta in Game 2 of the championship final to tie the best-of-three series 1-1.

The win was driven by a seven-goal first period by the Shamrocks and outstanding goaltending from Greyson Beggs. Beggs stopped 28 of 34 shots, including all nine shots he faced in the third period.

Victoria was led by Greysen Thompson with a hat trick and four assists for seven points. Ryan Lowe had three goals and two assists, while Evan McDougall had a goal and four assists. Carter Quested and Marcelo Carreiro also added two goals and two assists each.

For the Raiders, Cash Frijters continued his strong tournament with two goals and two assists, while Wyatt Viste had a hat trick.

Nathan Whittom played 20:59 and allowed eight goals on 20 shots. Kaiden McDonaugh played the remaining 29:01 and stopped 24 of 30 shots.

First Period

Victoria got off to a quick start with a seven-goal first period.

Evan McDougall opened the scoring 24 seconds into the game, and Dawson Wade made it 2-0 just 2:52 into the first period.

Viste got the Raiders on the board at the 3:46 mark, but Quested replied for Victoria just under a minute later to restore the two-goal lead.

Carreiro and Parker Sorenson then found the back of the net for Victoria to put the Shamrocks up 5-1.

Frijters cashed in at 9:23 to narrow Victoria’s lead to three goals.

Carreiro scored with 1:12 left in the first, followed by Lowe with 33 seconds on the clock as the Shamrocks led 7-2 after the first period.

Second Period

The Shamrocks continued to pull away early in the second period.

Phillip Busenius scored 59 seconds into the period, followed by Thompson at 1:50 to make it a seven-goal spread.

The Raiders found some momentum when Viste scored twice about one minute apart. Mitchell Carik then found the back of the net at 7:47 to get the Raiders within four.

Lowe restored Victoria’s five-goal cushion at 8:09, but Frijters replied at 10:32 to make it 10-6.

Thompson scored his second of the game with 6:20 remaining in the period as the Shamrocks led 11-6 heading into the third.

Third Period

Beggs shut down the Raiders in the third period, stopping all nine shots he faced. Meanwhile, the Raiders ran into penalty trouble that cost them.

Lowe scored his hat trick goal on the man advantage with 6:20 remaining in the game. Quested added another power-play goal with 4:35 on the clock to make it 13-6.

Thompson rounded out the scoring with a power-play marker with 1:20 remaining as the Shamrocks took a 14-6 victory to force a third and deciding game for the Minto Cup championship.