Thunder ready to battle 'Bellies

It will be a tall task for the Langley Thunder as they hit the road tonight to face the New Westminster Salmonbellies.

The Thunder are up against the 3-0 Salmonbellies – the Western Lacrosse Association’s lone unbeaten team – when the two senior A lacrosse squads hit the floor at Queens Park Arena. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

Langley has lost three straight following a season-opening victory, including a 14-7 setback to the Victoria Shamrocks on Wednesday night.

Head coach Rod Jensen said all areas of the team’s game need to improve.

“We need to be a little grittier on our loose balls and battle a little harder and get more people in there,” he explained, pointing out the fact his team is losing the loose ball battle by a nearly 2-to-1 margin through four games. “We are young and athletic but I don’t think we are anticipating as best as we can.”

And offensively, the team has shown signs of good things to come.

Tyler Pace and JP Kealey share the team-lead with eight goals through four games. Pace also has a team-high 14 points with Kealey and Connor Robinson right behind at 13 points.

 “We just need a little more time to get some more reps with each other and to feast on the things they are having success with,” Jensen said.

Another area the team needs to improve is spending less time in the penalty box. They took 10 minor penalties against Victoria, compared to just drawing one penalty.

Langley is averaging 22.5 penalty minutes per game, nearly five minutes higher than the league average (17.8).

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For more information:

Gary Ahuja, Langley Events Centre, 604.613.5242 (cell), 604.455.8830 (office) or email.