Around the National Lacrosse League for the games of Week Three, 11-12 January 2008. (Summaries are based on best-available information and may be amended as necessary.)

Rochester Knighthawks at Buffalo Bandits
Friday, 7:30 PM - HSBC Arena
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Nine players scored for Rochester as the Knighthawks defeated the Bandits, 12-9.

Rochester (1-0) opened with a quick goal from Sandy Chapman, then extended the lead to 2-0 courtesy of Matt Lyons with 4:55 left in the first quarter. After the Bandits quickly tied the game, the Knighthawks moved out in front again, on a last-minute Scott Evans goal.

John Tavares tied the game early in the second quarter for Buffalo (0-1), but the rout was soon on -- Stephen Hoar, Williams, and Ken Millin all scored before halftime, for a 6-3 Knighthawks advantage.

Rochester stretched its lead to 9-3 less than five minutes into the second half, on goals by Evans, his brother Shawn and Bill Greer.

Down 10-4 to begin the fourth quarter, Buffalo began to come back, with Mark Steenhuis and Kevin Dostie scoring early. However, Williams and John Grant quickly cancelled out the two goals, leaving the Bandits to rally late, getting within three (with a minute and a half to play) but no closer.

Tavares led all scorers, tallying seven points on two goals and five assists. Williams (2 goals, 3 assists) and Shawn Evans (1 goal, 4 assists) each recorded five points for the Knighthawks, who have now won sixteen consecutive games (playoffs included), six shy of the NLL record.

Minnesota Swarm at Toronto Rock
Friday, 7:30 PM - Air Canada Centre
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Ryan Cousins scored 1:27 into overtime, giving the Swarm a 17-16 comeback victory.

After almost eight minutes of scoreless lacrosse, Toronto (1-1) struck first, stringing together goals by Aaron Wilson and Ryan Benesch. After a Ryan Sharp goal for the Swarm, Blaine Manning pushed the Rock lead to 3-1.

Minnesota (1-0) turned the tables in the second quarter, tying the game with a pair of Andy Secore goals and going ahead seconds later, courtesy of Chad Culp. The rest of the half, the Rock could do no better than rally into a tie, and the clubs went to the locker rooms deadlocked at 7-7.

After swapping a few goals to open the third quarter, Toronto went on a mid-period tear, grabbing a 12-9 lead on goals by Benesch, Josh Sanderson and Cam Woods. Culp scored moments later, but Manning restored the three-goal lead by beating the horn at period's end.

The Swarm quickly drew even at 13-13, then again at 14-14, but Toronto moved ahead by two goals, both from Sanderson. Dean Hill scored with 2:25 left, then Ryan Ward tied the score 35 seconds later.

Cousins then sealed the victory after a couple missed opportunities in sudden death.

Craig Point, in his NLL debut, recorded the game high in points, eight, on two goals and six assists; Ward was close behind, tallying seven points on five goals and two helpers. For Toronto, Manning finished with three goals and five assists, while Sanderson had six goals and one assist.

Chicago Shamrox at Philadelphia Wings
Saturday, 7:30 PM - Wachovia Center
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Athan Iannucci scored five goals, while Jake Bergey and Merrick Thompson added four each, in the Wings' 19-11 romp over the Shamrox.

Newly-acquired Rob Blasdell put up a first-quarter shutout for Philadelphia (1-0), whose offense needed the help early on -- it took almost ten minutes for the game's first goal (Jason Crosbie, another newbie).

Iannucci and Thompson added goals for a 3-0 lead, but Chicago (0-2) slowly erased it, on goals by ex-Wing Jason Clark, Philly-area native Bill McGlone and Josh Wasson. No sweat for the Wings, who scored the next four goals and led at the break, 7-4.

The Wings spent most of the third quarter keeping the lead just out of Chicago's reach -- no closer than two goals, no further than four -- before blowing the game wide open in the fourth, a nine-goal outburst that showcased many of the Wings' new talent.

Iannucci, the second-year pro, scored three times in the fourth quarter, while first-round pick Thompson, trade pickup Taylor Wray, and dispersal draft selection Jamie Rooney had singles. The old guard was satisified, too -- eleventh-year pro Bergey scored three times in the fourth.

With seven points, Crosbie (1 goal, 6 assists) led all scorers, with Iannucci (5 goals, 1 assist), Bergey (4 goals, 2 assists) and Thompson (4 goals, 2 assists) all one point behind.

Lindsay Plunkett (2 goals, 2 assists), Callum Crawford (2 goals, 2 assists) and Wasson (1 goal, 3 assists) had four point each for the Shamrox.

Buffalo Bandits at Rochester Knighthawks
Saturday, 7:35 PM - Blue Cross Arena
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Roger Vyse scored four goals as the Bandits snapped the Knighthawks' sixteen-game winning streak, 14-9.

In a game defined by runs, Rochester (1-1) got the early lead, 3-0, on goals by John Grant, Shawn Williams and Scott Evans. However, Buffalo (1-1) stormed right back with three of its own, two from Mark Steenhuis sandwiching one by Vyse.

After Billy Dee Smith put the Bandits ahead, the Knighthawks stormed back for a 6-4 halftime advantage, on a goal from Shawn Evans at the five-minute mark and two more from Grant before intermission.

Matt Lyons extended Rochester's lead to 7-3 early in the third quarter, but, following an exchange of goals, Buffalo rallied for an 8-8 tie, two of those goals coming in the final 90 seconds of the period.

Cory Bomberry and Scott Evans swapped goals early in the fourth, portending a tight finish. Forget about it -- Kyle Laverty scored three minutes later, followed in quick order by Kevin Dostie and Bomberry. Chris White and Delby Powless added late goals to put the game away.

Grant (3 goals, 4 assists) and Williams (1 goal, 6 assists) led all scorers with seven points each. Steenhuis tallied six points, on three goals and three assists, for Buffalo.

The loss was Rochester's first since 19 January 2007; the Knighthawks fell six short of tying Buffalo's record of 22 straight wins (1992-1994).

Toronto Rock at Minnesota Swarm
Saturday, 8:00 PM - Xcel Energy Center
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Ryan Ward scored three goals as the Swarm finished a weekend sweep of the Rock with an 11-4 rout.

Minnesota (2-0) got the early lead on goals by Andy Secore and Sean Pollock, then settled into a 2-1 lead after the ageless Jim Veltman scored for Toronto (0-2).

Ward and Pollock teamed up to make the score 4-1 early in the second quarter, then Minnesota added two more just before halftime (sandwiching an Aaron Wilson goal) to lead 6-2 at intermission.

The second half wasn't much kinder to the Rock, which finally strung together consecutive goals midway through the third quarter to pull within 7-4.

Alas, Toronto didn't score again, finishing in a twenty-minute scoring drought. Meanwhile, Ward, Chad Culp, Dean Hill and Ryan Sharp were making a rout of it for the Swarm, who won last night in Toronto, 17-16.

Secore led all scorers with a goal and four assists, for five points. Veltman (2 goals), Ryan Benesch (1 goal, 1 assist) and Josh Sanderson (2 assists) paced the Rock offensively.

Edmonton Rush at Colorado Mammoth
Saturday, 9:00 PM - Pepsi Center
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Dan Carey scored three goals and Gavin Prout dished out six assists as the Mammoth topped the Rush, 14-11.

Colorado (2-0) took the quick lead when Brian Langtry found net just 43 seconds in, and Nenad Gajc made the score 2-0 four minutes later. However, A.J. Shannon pulled Edmonton (0-1) into a tie with two straight goals, and Jim Quinlan put the Rush ahead, 3-2, moments later.

Carey, though, levelled the score with 42 seconds remaining in the first quarter, then put the Mammoth back in front early in the second quarter. Jamie Shewchuk struck seconds later, and not long after that, Colorado was up, 7-3. Not to be outdone, Edmonton ran off four straight goals to end the second quarter in a 7-7 tie.

Colorado took the lead for good early in the third quarter, on a Jordan Cornfield goal, then extended its lead to 9-7 six minutes later on Carey's third goal.

Edmonton twice pulled to within one, but quick goals by Josh Sims and Nick Carlson with just over five minutes to play opened some breathing room for the Mammoth.

Prout's seven points (1 goal, 6 assists) led all scorers, with Carey close behind at six points (3 goals, 3 assists). Shannon (3 goals, 2 assists), Ben Prepchuk (2 goals, 3 assists) and Mike Accursi (1 goal, 4 assists) had five points each for the Rush.

San Jose Stealth at Calgary Roughnecks
Saturday, 9:30 PM - Saddledome
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Luke Wiles scored 47 seconds into overtime, giving the Stealth a 13-12 win over the Roughnecks.

Despite allowing early goals to Jeff Zywicki and Peter Veltman, Calgary (0-2) dominated much of the first half, rattling off six straight goals at one point and carrying an 8-3 lead to the locker room.

San Jose (1-0), though, came out firing in the third quarter, as Zywicki scored three times and Wiles twice in chopping the Riggers' lead to just 10-8.

The Stealth continued its hard charge well into the fourth quarter, scoring four times in succession (Veltman, Wiles, Colin Doyle and Cam Sedgwick) to take a 12-10 lead.

Not to be taken lightly, even in their stylish pink jerseys (a breast cancer awareness fundraiser), Calgary stormed back to force overtime on goals by Lewis Ratcliff and Curt Malawsky in the final minute of regulation.

That, of course, led to Wiles' game-winner, his fourth of the night (to go along with three assists). The top scorer, though, was Zywicki, with five goals and four assists. Ratcliff (3 goals, 6 assists) likewise had nine points for Calgary.

New York Titans at Portland LumberJax
Saturday, 10:30 PM - Rose Garden
Inside: Game Stats | Discuss the Game

Matt Vinc stopped 36 of 47 LumberJax shots and added an empty-net goal in the Titans' 14-11 victory.

New York (1-0) opened its sophomore season with a bang, jumping out to a 5-0 lead late in the first quarter, including two goals from Casey Powell. Derek Malawsky got the LumberJax on the board with about two minutes left in the period, but Powell and Jarett Park countered with goals in the final thirteen seconds.

Portland (0-1) regained its footing in the second quarter, with Ryan Powell -- Casey's younger brother -- and Malawsky neeting goals early and Dan Dawson potting one at mid-quarter. However, the last laugh belonged to the Titans, a Mike McLellan goal at 11:15 for an 8-4 halftime advantage.

After a rather uninteresting third quarter (three goals each), Portland opened the fourth quarter with a flurry, tying the game at 11-11 with 8:27 remaining on goals by Malawsky, Pete Jacobs, Dawson and Powell.

Pat Maddalena snapped the tie a minute and forty seconds later, and McLellan added an insurance goal with 90 seconds to play. Vinc then scored on an empty net in the closing seconds.

Dawson, Malawsky and Casey Powell tied for the game high in points, eight, all three doing so on four goals and four assists.