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Ontario Series Lacrosse
First Stumble of the Season for the Merchants
By Mark Stehlin
One week ago, the Brooklin Merchants defeated their main rivals Six Nations Rivermen at home to improve to 8-0 in the 2026 Ontario Series Lacrosse campaign. It would be those same Rivermen who would spoil the perfect run for the Merchants with a 13-8 win over their guests at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena on Saturday night.
General Manager, Gavin Prout and coaches Ryan Degerdon and Mark Debrone had to strategize on a roster as the Merchants Senior A affiliate, Brooklin Lacrosse Club (BLC) were in action in Owen Sound. A few players swapped jerseys for Saturday’s games.
One of those players was Lucas Littlejohn, who made his season debut last week for BLC after undergoing an appendectomy. At 14:13 of the first period, with his first of four goals on the night, he gave the Merchants a 2-1 lead. That lead was short-lived, however. A mere 13 seconds later, the Rivermen launched a three-goal run that gave them a 4-2 lead after twenty minutes.
The middle frame saw each team score a pair of goals, two on the power play for the Merchants, and the scoreboard showed a 6-4 lead for the home team.
With only six minutes elapsed in the final frame, the Merchants were staring at a 10-4 deficit after their hosts reeled off four straight. A Degerdon-Debrone coached team does not go down without a fight. Littlejohn on the power play, followed 40 seconds later by a goal from Jared Norris gave the visitors some life. It would prove to be too little too late as the Rivermen continued to press, and despite a late marker by Littlejohn, it was a 13-8 final in favour of the hosts.
The Merchants are now at 8-1 for 16 points while the Rivermen are at 9-2 for 18 points, the two games in hand for Brooklin may prove critical in the waning days of the season. The Merchants host Ennismore on Sunday night at 6 pm and will finish the regular season next weekend with a home and series against the Hamilton Bengals. The Rivermen have one game remaining, a trip to Collingwood on Saturday at 7 pm.