The Timbermen dropped the ball and that was one of the reasons why they lost.
Nanaimo's Western Lacrosse Association club made a few too many turnovers in a 10-8 loss to the Maple Ridge Burrards on Sunday night at Frank Crane Arena.
The home team had a shaky start, falling behind 3-0, and although they tied it up 4-4 in the second and 6-6 in the third, they couldn't tie it up again late.
"We don't want to take moral victories, but we played better and came back and made it a game," said Paul Brebber, T-men forward.
The Timbermen know they had chances to take control. More offence during the low-scoring first and second periods might have changed the complexion of the game, and there were a few occasions late when Nanaimo was one shot away from tying the score.
"It was just small, costly possession mistakes…" said Kaleb Toth, the team's coach. "Lacrosse is all about ball possession. We need to control the ball more; we need to not panic when guys pressure us; we need to be able to catch passes and throw passes."
Brebber said players seemed to let nerves get to them.
"A lot of us are gripping the stick a little bit too tight and I think we're just trying to do a little bit too much and we're trying to force stuff that's not there, necessarily," Brebber said.
He led the team with two goals and other scorers were Bobby Debrone, Macgregor Johnston, Braden Kmita, Jamie Sorensen, Cayle Ratcliff and Doug Langlois. Zak Boychuk tended goal as the T-men outshot the Burrards 45-39.
Spencer Evans led Maple Ridge with four goals, Andrew Murphy scored a hat trick and Aaron Davis tallied twice. Frankie Scigliano was the winning goalie.
As the Timbermen try for better results, Toth said better practices will be important. If guys pay attention in learning the system, he said, they'll be more comfortable come game time.
"Guys need to have confidence in themselves and their abilities in order to make the right plays and the right decisions," said the coach.
He suggested that lineup changes are in the works.
"I'm going to be giving a lot of guys opportunities to play here," Toth said. "If they play good and play the way that I want them to play and play smart, they're going to stay in the lineup. I don't care if they're a 10-year vet or a one-year guy."
GAME ON … The T-men again have just one game next weekend, a Father's Day tilt Sunday (June 15) at Frank Crane Arena against the Langley Thunder. Game time is 7 p.m.
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