Jr. C Lakers Fall Short in Meredith Cup Final as Six Nations Claims First Championship
/By Scott Arnold
The Peterborough Jr. C Lakers' run at a third straight Meredith Cup championship came to an end Friday night, but they leave the postseason having put together another deep playoff run and another memorable championship series.
Members of the Peterborough Jr. C Lakers gather following Friday night's Game 4 loss to the Six Nations Stealth at Healthy Planet Arena. The defeat brought an end to a season that included a Central Division title and a third straight trip to the Meredith Cup Final. (Photo courtesy of the Peterborough Jr. C Lakers)
The Six Nations Stealth captured their first Meredith Cup with a 13-7 victory over Peterborough at Healthy Planet Arena, winning the best-of-five final 3-1.
Six Nations took control early, scoring three times in the opening period while holding the Lakers off the scoreboard.
Peterborough came out stronger in the second, with Kennen Withers getting the Lakers on the board at 12:09, assisted by Quinn Jacobs and Ryder Perry. Cardiff Mader and Ryder Evans followed with goals of their own, cutting the Six Nations lead to 5-3.
The Stealth answered with two more goals before the end of the period to take a 7-3 lead into the third.
Peterborough continued to battle in the final period. Ryder Evans scored at 12:20, assisted by Perry, before Owen Thake and Kyson Campbell also found the net. Bobby Crowe scored the Lakers' final goal of the season with 25 seconds remaining, assisted by Campbell.
Six Nations, however, scored six times in the third period to secure the Ontario Junior C Lacrosse League (OJCLL) championship.
A packed house at Healthy Planet Arena brought plenty of energy for the Meredith Cup Final, with Lakers supporters backing Peterborough while a large contingent of Six Nations fans made the trip to cheer on the Stealth as they chased their first championship. The atmosphere stayed loud throughout the night (Photo by Scott Arnold)
Despite the result, the Lakers' season included another trip to the Meredith Cup Final, their third consecutive appearance in the championship series.
Peterborough opened the playoffs by sweeping the Huntsville Hawks in three games before defeating the Whitby Warriors in four games in the Central Division Final. The Lakers then swept the Cornwall Celtics in the Meredith Cup semifinals to earn their return to the championship series.
The final put Peterborough up against the Six Nations Stealth, who finished the regular season with the league's best record at 14-2. The Lakers split the first two games of the final, winning Game 2 at home 9-6 after dropping the opener 7-3 in Six Nations. The Stealth then won two in a row, winning Game 3 by a score of 9-7 before their Game 4 championship win.
The Six Nations Stealth celebrate with the Meredith Cup after defeating the Peterborough Jr. C Lakers in Game 4 on Friday night to capture the first championship in franchise history. (Photo courtesy of the ojcll)
