Around the National Lacrosse League for the games of Week Fifteen, 3-6 April 2008. (Summaries are based on best-available information and may be amended as necessary.)

Rochester Knighthawks at Colorado Mammoth
Thursday, 9:00 PM - Pepsi Center
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Four Colorado players scored two goals each as the Mammoth defeated the Knighthawks, 11-8.

After playing to a 1-1 first quarter, Colorado (7-4) scattered five goals over the second quarter, including a pair from Jason Wulder. The Mammoth led by a pedestrian score of 4-2 late in the period, but the teams combined for four goals in the last 2:25 of the period.

Colorado blew the game open early in the third quarter, scoring four straight goals for a 9-4 lead. Shawn Evans finally ended the scoring drought for Rochester (5-7) with under three minutes to play in the quarter.

Chris Gill and Gavin Prout scored before the fourth quarter was two minutes old, extending the Mammoth's lead to 11-6. John Grant potted the last two goals of the game for the Knighthawks.

Grant finished as the game's high scorer, posting five points on four goals and an assist. Prout, Wulder, Jamie Shewchuk and Brian Langtry each tallied two goals and two assists for the Tusks.

With the win, Colorado becomes the first team to clinch a berth in the postseason.

Rochester Knighthawks at Toronto Rock
Saturday, 7:00 PM - Air Canada Centre
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Scott Evans scored four goals as the Knighthawks stayed in playoff contention with a 9-6 win over the Rock.

Rochester (6-7) took an early 1-0 lead on a goal by Evans, but newly-acquired Lewis Ratcliff and old hand Aaron Wilson put Toronto (7-5) ahead, 2-1, late in the period. Seconds later, though, Shawn Williams tied the game for the K'Hawks.

The teams went back and forth in the second quarter, as well, with Blaine Manning scoring early to put the Rock ahead, only to see Bill Greer tie the game a few minutes later. Toronto again took the lead (Ratcliff), and Rochester again tied (Greer again) to force a 4-4 deadlock at halftime.

Rochester -- Evans, mainly -- dominated the third quarter like a team desperately trying to avoid missing the playoffs for the first time in team history. Evans struck twice early in the third and (after a Manning goal for Toronto) again with seconds left in the quarter, putting the Knighthawks ahead 7-5.

John Grant extended the Knighthawks' lead early in the fourth quarter, and Mat McLeod added an insurance goal with about six minutes to play.

Evans (4 goals, 1 assist) and Ratcliff (3 goals, 2 assists) led their respective clubs offensively, each recording five points.

Colorado Mammoth at Buffalo Bandits
Saturday, 7:30 PM - HSBC Arena
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Mark Steenhuis scored three goals as the Bandits held off the Mammoth, 12-11.

Buffalo (8-5) opened with a 4-0 run, stretching into the second quarter. Steenhuis opened the scoring midway through the first quarter, then Roger Vyse tacked on a goal to end the first period, Kevin Dostie scored early in the second and Steenhuis netted another goal moments later.

Colorado (7-5) scored five of the next six goals, tying the game at 5-5 with four minutes left in the first half. It was the last chance the Mammoth would have to take the lead, as Steenhuis and Dostie struck again and the Bandits finished the first half in front by one, 7-6.

Following twelve minutes of scoreless lacrosse to begin the second half, Pat McCready and Cory Bomberry struck 23 seconds apart, extending Buffalo's lead to 9-6.

Colorado pulled to within a goal of Buffalo three times in the fourth quarter, the latest coming on a Brian Langtry goal with 3:12 left in regulation. The Mammoth couldn't produce that one extra goal that would have forced overtime.

Gavin Prout led all scorers offensively, tallying a goal and six assists in defeat. Steenhuis paced the Bandits with three goals and three assists.

Philadelphia Wings at Chicago Shamrox
Saturday, 8:00 PM - Sears Centre
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Bobby McBride scored seven seconds into overtime, lifting the Shamrox over the Wings, 15-14.

Philadelphia (7-4) twice took a one-goal lead early in the first quarter before the Shamrox went on an 8-1 run (two goals by Cody Jacobs), ending the first period with a stunning 9-3 lead.

Wings goaltender (and ex-Shamrox netminder) Brandon Miller settled down in the second quarter, holding Chicago (4-7) scoreless until just before intermission. In the meantime, the Wings netted three goals, narrowing their deficit to 10-6 at halftime.

Merrick Thomson scored twice in the third quarter, followed closely by a goal from Athan Iannucci. That made it 10-9, but McBride scored midway through the period to give the Shamrox a two-goal lead again.

Mike Hobbins made the score 12-9 seconds into the fourth quarter, but the Wings had the game tied up just four minutes later. Later in the period, the Wings went ahead, 14-13, on goals by Iannucci and John Christmas, only to allow Chicago to force overtime on a Kevin Ross goal.

Iannucci (4 goals, 2 assists) and Chicago's Jonas Derks (6 assists) led all scorers with six points each.

New York Titans at Minnesota Swarm
Saturday, 8:00 PM - Xcel Energy Center
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Sean Pollock scored three fourth-quarter goals as the Swarm topped the Titans, 12-9.

Minnesota (8-4) took a quick 2-0 lead on goals by Chad Culp and Ryan Ward, but the Titans tied the game by the end of the first quarter on a pair of goals by Mike McLellan.

Rory McDade and Andy Secore scored early in the second quarter, opening a lead for the Swarm, and Ward stretched it to 5-2 with two minutes left in the half. A late goal by Ryan Boyle cut the gap to 5-3 at intermission.

New York (6-6) lashed out for four goals to begin the second half, taking a short-lived 7-5 lead. Culp scored late in the third quarter, Ward tied the game a minute into the second and the Swarm was back in front on a Pollock goal with 11:29 to play.

Pat Maddalena scored for New York a minute later, tying the game at 8-8, but the Swarm scored the next three (two by Pollock) and never looked back.

Ward (3 goals, 4 assists) and Secore (1 goal, 6 assists) led the Swarm offensively. Boyle finished with a goal and five assists to pace the Titans.

Calgary Roughnecks at Edmonton Rush
Saturday, 9:30 PM - Saddledome
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Buck Stobart scored with 2:05 to play, snapping a 9-9 tie and pushing the Rush to an 11-9 win over the Roughnecks.

Calgary (4-9) led early, as Josh Sanderson and Scott Ranger scored for a 2-1 Roughnecks lead. Quinlan and Plunkett scored early in the second for the Rush, but the Riggers reclaimed the lead, 5-4, late in the half.

Plunkett tied the game at 5-5 just before halftime, then the teams played to an uneventful third quarter, a goal apiece.

Dan Stroup put Edmonton (4-7) in front 1:46 into the fourth quarter, but the Roughnecks took an 8-7 lead four minutes later. Back came the Rush, claiming a 9-8 lead with seven minutes to play.

Sanderson tied the game at 10-10 with five minutes left in regulation, but Stobart netted his first goal of the season to break the tie. Mike Hominuck then added an insurance goal seconds later.

Quinlan led all scorers, tallying five points on four goals and an assist. Tracey Kelusky had a goal and three assists for the Roughnecks.

San Jose Stealth at Portland LumberJax
Saturday, 10:30 PM - Rose Garden
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Jeff Zywicki scored five goals, four of them in a 9-0 Stealth run that led to a 12-9 win over the LumberJax.

Portland (4-8) had a 4-2 lead after one quarter, but lost it all and then some when the Stealth scored all five goals of the second quarter. Zywicki netted two of those goals, with Colin Doyle, Eric Martin and Frank Resetarits also scoring.

San Jose (7-5) scored another four goals to start the third quarter, including another two by Zywicki, to take an 11-4 lead. Derek Malawsky finally snapped Portland's cold streak, scoring at 12:18 for the first LumberJax goal in 31 minutes.

Malawsky's goal turned out to be the tip of the iceberg, as Richard Morgan also scored by the end of the period, then Ryan Powell, Dan Dawson and Malawsky struck in the fourth. That cut the deficit to just two goals, 11-9, but Zywicki (who else?) added a valuable insurance goal with 1:16 to play.

Zywicki finished with seven points, on 5 goals and 2 assists. Malawsky (3 goals, 1 assist) and Dawson (1 goal, 3 assists) tallied four points each for the LumberJax.

Portland LumberJax at San Jose Stealth
Sunday, 4:00 PM - HP Pavilion
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Ryan Powell scored three goals as the LumberJax salvaged one game this weekend against the Stealth, a 12-10 matinee victory.

Portland (5-8), smarting from last night's loss to the Stealth, opened with two goals in the first five minutes, then held San Jose (7-6) off the board until a Frank Resetarits goal with 1:14 left in the first quarter.

Powell scored 15 seconds into the second period, extending the LumberJax lead to 3-1, but Colin Doyle and Jeff Zywicki combined to the tie the game at 3-3 moments later. Portland jumped back in front by two less than a minute later, then held a 5-4 lead until Gary Rosyski tied the game a minute and a half before intermission.

On goals by Rosyski and Peter Veltman, San Jose moved out to a 7-5 lead early in the third, but the 'Jax fired back quickly, scoring four straight goals (Pete Jacobs, Peter Morgan, Powell and Brodie Merrill) to take a 9-7 lead.

Cam Sedgwick pulled the Stealth to within a goal 45 seconds into the fourth quarter, but Portland soon stretched its lead to 11-8. In a late run, Sedgwick and Kyle Sorensen scored to again make it a one-goal game with 2:10 to play.

A Richard Morgan goal at 14:55 then sealed victory for the LumberJax.

Zywicki led all scorers, tallying seven points on two goals and five assists. Dan Dawson had two goals and four assists for Portland.

Toronto Rock at Philadelphia Wings
Sunday, 8:05 PM - Wachovia Center
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Athan Iannucci scored four goals as the Wings snapped a three-game losing streak, defeating the Rock, 11-9.

Philadelphia (8-4) emerged from a low-scoring first quarter (one goal apiece) to take a 5-3 halftime lead, with league-leading scorer Athan Iannucci scoring three times in the period. Including a second-half goal, Iannucci's season total is now 54, just seven shy of the single-season record held by Gary Gait.

Blaine Manning pulled Toronto (7-6) to within a goal, scoring five minutes into the third quarter, but the Wings rattled off four goals in the final five minutes of the period (Kyle Sweeney, John Christmas, Iannucci and Jamie Rooney).

Ryan Benesch scored early in the fourth for Toronto, but A.J. Shannon quickly restored the Wings' five-goal lead. Benesch soon struck again, though, followed by Aaron Wilson and Scott Campbell, and the Rock was within a pair, at 10-8, with over nine minutes to play.

Toronto's offense fizzled after that, with only a Lewis Ratcliff goal the rest of the way for the Rock.

Iannucci (4 goals, 1 assist) and Merrick Thomson (2 goals, 3 assists) tallied five points each for the Wings, who have regained a share of first place in the Eastern Division. Benesch (3 goals, 1 assist) and Ratcliff (2 goals, 2 assists) had four points for the Rock.