(August 4, 2012)… The World Champion Rochester Knighthawks were back in action Saturday afternoon at the Iroquois lacrosse Arena in Six Nations. But it was not for an early season exhibition game; the nine players and two coaches embarked on Game One of their Major Series Lacrosse Semifinal.

The Six Nations Chiefs – with Knighthawks Craig Point, Cody Jamieson, Alex “Kedoh” Hill, Stephen Keogh and Sid Smith in the lineup – defeated the Brampton Excelsiors 12-3 to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

With so many Knighthawks in the game, it was no surprise that the Rochester players were among the top scorers. It was, however, impressive that the Knighthawks had a hand in the first four goals of the contest.

Hill, who has played his best lacrosse this summer, netted two goals. He staked the Chiefs to a 1-0 lead at 6:42 of the first, and capped off Six Nations’ six-goal period with a goal off a stick fake at 18:01 for a 6-0 advantage.

Hill’s first tally was followed by Keogh’s quick-stick tally at 10:01. Point’s hard work then led to a 3-0 lead, as he dove and tapped the ball ahead to Rhys Duch, who fired a shot past Brandon Noble. Point made it 4-0 at 13:56, converting a rebound after a Keogh shot. Point (1+2) and Duch (2+1) both recorded three-point games, while Stephan Leblanc led the Chiefs with one goal and three assists.

“It’s always a good feeling when you score a goal,” said Point, whose goal proved to be the game-winner. “The offense was clicking, the defense was clicking and we ended up having a great night.”

Brampton was not as fortunate. The Excelsiors found very little room to maneuver and finally beat Mike Poulin (31 saves) at 15:07 on a goal by Dan Dawson. His tally ended an 8-0 start, which was aided by second-period goals by Tom Montour and Colin Doyle. It was a rough road to the series, and Brampton was without goalies Anthony Cosmo and Matt Vinc. Head Coach Mike Hasen, who also coaches the Knighthawks, was more concerned with his offense that scored two goals in the second and one in the third.

“We have to keep it simple, have more patience, and keep the ball moving,” said Hasen.

Resetarits netted the other Brampton goal after a great outside shot by Keogh put Six Nations in front 9-1. Keogh finished the game with three goals. He stressed the importance of winning Game One coming into the contest off a first-round bye after winning their division.
“After having two weeks off, I thought we were going to come out a little rusty,” said Keogh. “It was fun to get back on the floor. You could see how excited everyone was in the locker room and it showed with a 6-0 run.”

The defending Mann Cup Champion Brampton Excelsiors roster included Knighthawks Joe Walters (0+1), Tyler Burton and Dylan Evans. Knighthawks Mike Kirk (Brampton) and Travis Hill (Six Nations) were scratches. The Excels, with Hasen and Assistant Coach Pat O’Toole behind the bench, will now get ready for Game Two, which is set for Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. in Brampton.