Rivermen return to winning ways with victory over Merchants

The Six Nations Rivermen once again managed to find a way to get back into the win column. The Rivermen had their 11-game win streak snapped this past Thursday when they were downed 8-6 by the Oakville Rock. For Six Nations, that was their first loss of its 2022 Ontario Series Lacrosse campaign. The Rivermen rebounded from that setback, however, to defeat the Oshawa-based Merchants Lacrosse Club 10-6 on Sunday. That match was held at the Six Nations Sports and Cultural Memorial Centre.

Vern Hill led the Rivermen attack with a five-point performance, including the four transition goals he scored.

“It felt good to win again,” Hill said, reflecting on last Thursday’s setback. Hill added losing to the Rock was perhaps a blessing in disguise for the Rivermen, who had dominated several of their games during their prolonged winning streak.

“It let us know teams are there to play and that nobody likes to lose,” he said.

The Rivermen got onto the scoreboard early in Sunday’s match as Kevin Owen Hill scored just 61 seconds into the opening period. Six Nations scored twice more in the period and managed to keep the Merchants off the scoreboard to take a 3-0 lead into the first intermission.

“Our team really came out to play tonight,” Vern Hill said.

The Rivermen outscored the Merchants 4-3 in the middle frame to enjoy a 7-3 advantage heading into the third. The two squads then scored three goals each during the final 20 minutes.

The Rivermen are now sporting a record of 12-1-0. With the loss the Merchants saw their mark fall to 4-6-1. The Merchants are still occupying the fourth and final playoff spot in the six-team league, one point ahead of the 4-9-0 Ennismore James Gang who have played two more games than the Merchants..

Meanwhile, Scott Del Zotto and Wes Whitlow added a pair of goals each for the Rivermen. Gavin Skye had the other Six Nations goal.

The Rivermen, who have three regular season matches remaining, are now off until this Saturday, July 9. They’ll host the Owen Sound North Stars in a contest, which has an opening faceoff scheduled for 7 p.m. Six Nations will then hit the road on Sunday to square off against the Merchants. That game, which will be held at Oshawa’s Delpark Homes Centre, is set for 6 p.m.