Eduardo Curros – Western Correspondent, All Lacrosse All The Time
The Vancouver Warriors were on the verge of punching a playoff ticket for the first time since 2017 coming into their Week 20 showdown with the Toronto Rock on Friday night. The Warriors were 4-0 since the acquisition of Christian Del Bianco at the trade deadline, as head coach Curt Malawsky gears his team up for a postseason run. Meanwhile, the Toronto Rock have been trying to find new momentum following the trade of several veteran players, but have remained inconsistent. Behind eight points from Adam Charalambides and seven from Keegan Bal, the Warriors beat the Rock 12-10 for their fifth straight win. Vancouver improves to 10-7 on the year, and clinches a playoff berth. They can potentially get a first round home playoff game with a win over Philadelphia in Week 21, pending other outcomes.
Warriors take control in first half
The Warriors pushed their offense from the opening faceoff, scoring five goals in the first quarter. Adam Charalambides started the scoring off passes from Ryan Dilks and Jackson Suboch at 2:02. Corey Small would reply for Toronto off passes from Chris Boushy and Dan Craig at 3:56. Charalambides scored his second one with help from Riley Loewen at 4:55. Josh Dawick got help from Craig and Boushy at 6:20 to close out the first quarter scoring for the Rock. Vancouver scored three more with Owen Grant scoring unassisted at 13:26, Loewen driving one home with assists from Kegan Bal and Dylan McIntosh at 13:51, and Ryan Martel unassisted at 14:56. The Warriors took a 5-2 lead after the first quarter.
Vancouver made the Rock pay on two consecutive power plays in the second quarter. Charalambides scoring the first one at 5:00 with help from McIntosh and Bal. Bal followed up with another, assisted by Charalambides at 12:32. Small scored his second goal and the Rock’s only goal of the quarter with help from Challen Rogers at 14:30. The Warriors led at the half 7-3.
Warriors second half
Vancouver picked up where they left off in the first half, as Bal scored at 2:50. Marcus Klarich, with another assist from Charalambides, made it 9-3 at 6:33. Rogers would score a power play goal with help from Boushy and Craig at 11:16. Boushy added a goal at 11:48, and another power play goal with help from Dawick and Craig at 13:08 to cut the lead to 9-6. Kevin Crowley scored at 13:58, assisted by Bal and Charalambides, to give the Warriors a 10-6 lead entering the fourth quarter.
Charalambides and Bal would connect at 0:26 in the fourth quarter. Klarich scored at 0:59 to extend Vancouver’s lead to 12-6. The Rock fought back, scoring four unanswered goals. Dawick, Justin Martin, and Jake Darlison scored at 1:51, 9:48, and 9:56 respectively. Boushy then scored a power play goal at 13:02. However, the Warriors would hold on for the 12-10 win, securing a playoff berth.
Curros’s Corner
Warriors: Charalambides (4g, 4a); Bal (2g, 5a); Klarich (2g); Loewen (1g, 2a); Grant (1g); Crowley (1g); Martel (1g)
Rock: Boushy (3g, 4a); Dawick (2g, 2a); Small (2g, 1a); Rogers (1g, 3a); Darlison (1g); Martin (1g); Dan Craig (4a)
Alec Stathakis (VAN): 22-27 Faceoffs; 18 Loose Balls (led all players)
Christian Del Bianco (VAN): 34 saves; Troy Holowchuk (TOR): 28 saves