Buzz too much (again) for Bulldogs

Despite playing two good periods against the undefeated Oakville Buzz, the host Halton Hills Bulldogs again found themselves on the short end of an 8-4 scoreline against their OLA Jr. B lacrosse foes on Sunday evening. The Bulldogs lost all four games of the regular-season series to the 18-0 Buzz and two of those contests were decided in the final minute. Oakville also swept Halton Hills out of last season's second round of playoffs and 'Dogs' captain Travis Bland is tired of just scoring moral victories against the Buzz. "We played them well in certain parts of the game but it's still frustrating that we can't get rid of that 10-minute lapse that kills us," said Bland. "We know we can beat them and everyone wants to get another shot at it in the playoffs." With rookie Michael Cregan starting in goal on Sunday in place of the injured Kyle Kennery, Halton Hills jumped out to a 2-1 first-period lead on goals by Cameron Flint and Graham Knoepfli, but undisciplined penalties, including two unsportsmanlike conduct minors, led to three Oakville power-play goals in quick succession. The Buzz led 8-3 after 40 minutes and although the result was never in doubt, Cregan earned player-of-the game honours for shutting down top Buzz scorers Josh Smyth and Brenden Thenhaus and keeping a clean sheet in the final frame. Bland and Brandon Goodfellow rounded out the hosts' scoring. The 9-8 Bulldogs finish off the regular season this weekend with three games in four nights. They'll travel to Clarington to face the Green Gaels on Thursday, followed by a trip to Huntsville on Saturday evening, then host Markham Sunday at 6 p.m. at Georgetown's Mold-Masters SportsPlex to close out the schedule. Should they win all three of those games, the Bulldogs will likely face either Mimico or Akwesasne in the opening round of the post season starting next week. "You can feel that we're all starting to gel and things are going to come together in the playoffs," Bland added. "The main thing we had a problem with was our confidence but I know the guys are going to be ready when the time comes." The Halton Hills club also made a deal this past week to acquire big right hander David Brock from the Burlington Jr. A Chiefs and he picked up an assist in his first outing Sunday.

Halton Hills Bulldogs' forward Cameron Flint gets tripped up by Oakville's Drew Petkoff during their Jr. B lacrosse game Sunday night at the Mold-Masters SportsPlex. Despite another goal from the rookie phenom Flint, the Bulldogs lost 8-4 as the first-place Buzz completed a four-game season series sweep.