GAME 4 RECAP: Adanacs Win Away From Minto

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They scored the first three goals of the game, but the Coquitlam Adanacs really had to work to pull out a well-deserved 5-4 win over the New Westminster Salmonbellies. The win leaves Coquitlam just a win away from returning to their 9th straight Minto Cup championships. 

A Connor Robinson tally with just under seven minutes to play broke a 3-3 deadlock and put New West in the drivers seat. It capped a four-goal run that looked like it may propel the Bellies to the win and a 2-2 series deadlock. Instead, the Adanacs showed some true resilience and mental fortitude, potting two late ones to steal a win and push their arch rivals to the brink of elimination.

Game 4 was a classic playoff tilt - a physical lacrosse game between two clubs that just don't like each other. Both teams seem just fine with playing a grind-it-out style that puts an emphases on playing mistake free lacrosse. It's made for an awesome series, and the stands have been packed accordingly. It was a true see-saw battle that shows just how slim the margins are in a winner-takes-all type of series. 

Colin Munro got the A's out to a good start, scoring the only goal of the opening period before adding a second in the middle frame. That made things 3-0 and a bleak outlook for the Bellies - but the team showed some resilience of their own, battling back to trail by only a goal after 40 minutes. Larson Sundown and Jeremy Bosher potted goals a minute apart and it gave New West some hope going into the 3rd.

Those hopes were amplified by another Sundown goal seven minutes into the third before Robinson got the go-ahead goal. But Reid Bowering added a nice transition goal to tie things up, and Angelo Pontellini had the decisive goal 24 seconds later to rip this one right out of the hands of the red, blue and white. 

The Bellies don't face an insurmountable mission to come back from 3-1 down, but it is a difficult road ahead. They'll have to take two in hostile territory and three straight overall; the A's haven't lost three in a row since 2014. 

Both Erik Kratz and Christian Del Bianco were stellar at times between the pipes last night; Kratz had 48 stops on 53 shots while Del Bianco made 44 saves on 48 shots. 

3 STARS

1. CHRISTIAN DEL BIANCO - 44 SAVES ON 48 SHOTS (.916 SV%)

2. CONNOR ROBINSON - 1 GOAL, 3 ASSIST

3. COLIN MUNRO - 2 GOALS 

BOXSCORE - http://www.bcjall.com/stats#/23/game/128231/boxscore?season_id=613