Rush snap losing streak with win over Rock

After dropping two straight contests, the Edmonton Rush (4-3) moved back over .500 with a 14-13 victory over the Toronto Rock (6-3) at Rexall Place Sunday afternoon.

The two teams exchanged goals throughout the first half, with neither squad leading by more than two goals at any point in the half. Both teams netted three goals in the first quarter and five in the second.

The scoring settled down in the third quarter, with the Rock scoring twice and the Rush just once. Rush forward Gavin Prout scored the first goal of the half to give Edmonton a 9-8 lead, but Rock forwards Blaine Manning and Colin Doyle answered back to stake the Rock to a 10-9 lead heading into the final stanza.

The Rush offense exploded in the fourth quarter, scoring the first four goals of the period, including the final two by forward Ryan Powell. Doyle ended the scoring streak with a goal at the 6:51 mark to make the score 13-11.

The Rock eventually closed to within 14-13 after goals by Manning and forward Kasey Beirnes, but were unable to tie the score over the final 2:17 of play.

"This win was huge. I think this was a total team effort", said Rush forward Ryan Powell who led the club with four goals and four assists for eight points. "Last week in Toronto was pretty embarrasing with our effort. We responded really well tonight. If we can put that kind of energy and leave that on the turf, we can be a really good team."

"We scored some pretty goals tonight, because we executed and we played hard", said Rush head coach Derek Keenan on his team's efforts on Sunday afternoon. "Overall, the intensity level is where it needs to be."

After a 6-1 start, the Rock have now dropped two straight, going 0-for-Alberta on the road this season. Prior to the loss at Edmonton, Toronto lost at Calgary last week. Rock forward Blaine Manning was not too pleased with the result of the game. "They out worked us, they out loose balled us. We didn't play well enough to win. It's tough to come all the way out here for a loss."

"We couldn't really get on a run" Manning said. "At the end, we started to pull our goalie and had some luck. But we weren't able to tie it."