Disciplined Snipers Register Victory Against Bears

DISCIPLINED SNIPERS REGISTER VICTORY AGAINST BEARS

By Sam Laskaris

Two issues the Six Nations Snipers have been battling this season are some undisciplined play and having a short bench.

The Snipers, however, didn’t have to worry about either of those concerns on Sunday.

Thanks in part to a full bench and the fact the Snipers took just one minor penalty in the whole game, the Six Nations squad was able to down the Oshweken Bears 15-9 in an Arena Lacrosse League (ALL) match held at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena (ILA).

With the victory, the Snipers are now sporting a 3-2 mark. The Bears, who have had their share of early-season struggles, are now winless in five starts.

Snipers’ head coach Darcy Powless was pleased his side had a full roster (20 runners and a pair of goalies) dressed for the encounter against the Bears.

The Six Nations squad contested some of its other matches this season with a short bench as several players Powless was counting on to play did not show up for varying reasons.

“I told the guys if we had a full bench, we could be 5-0 just like Whitby,” Powless said.

That would be the defending league champion Whitby Steelhawks, the only club in the eight-team ALL’s Ontario-based East Division that is undefeated after five starts this season.

The Snipers are currently tied for third in the standings with the Toronto Monarchs, who have an identical 3-2 record.

Besides the Steelhawks, the Snipers and Monarchs are also behind the 4-1 Peterborough Timbermen.

Sunday’s match between the Snipers and Bears featured two of the three ALL teams that play their home contests out of the ILA. The Paris RiverWolves also play out of the local facility.

Like his squad, Powless said the Bears’ roster also includes several Six Nations members.

“We’ve got a little in-town rivalry going on,” Powless said. “But my biggest concern is making sure our guys are prepared. At the end of the day, that’s what matters to me.”

Snipers’ defender Jerry Staats also tried to downplay the significance of squaring off against a local rival.

“For me, and I don’t want to speak for the rest of the guys on the team, it’s just another game,” he said. “Lacrosse is lacrosse to me.”

Staats added he is familiar with several of those on the Ohsweken roster so the outcome of the contest will lead to a little bit of bragging rights.

Staats also said he didn’t think the Snipers would be overconfident heading into the match against the winless Bears.

“You don’t want to take anybody lightly,” he said. “And we were coming off of a loss as well.”

Like Powless, Staats was pleased to see the Snipers were only assessed one minor penalty versus the Bears.

Staats had picked up eight minor infractions himself in Six Nations’ first four games. He said Powless stressed the importance of staying out of the box to his charges.

“He’s been hounding myself, and everybody else within the lineup,” Staats said of the Snipers’ bench boss, who has been preaching discipline.

Colton Armitage led the Snipers offensively on Sunday with a hat trick. Kealon Pilon and Briley Maxwell added a pair of goals each.

Eight others also scored for the Snipers. They were Jeremy Bomberry, Kaelen Smith, Wes Whitlow, Mitch Zulian, Tye Argent, Mike McLaughlin, Riley Hess and Eric Poirier.

The Snipers’ next game is this Sunday against the RiverWolves. The opening faceoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the ILA.