COQUITLAM 8 VICTORIA 7 (Adanacs win series 4-2)
Dane Dobbie and Nick Rose are Shamrock killers.
The pesky Dobbie and goaltender Rose from the Coquitlam Adanacs were huge factors as they knocked the Victoria Shamrocks out of the Western Lacrosse Association playoffs.
Dobbie notched two goals and added four assists Wednesday as the Adanacs beat the 'Rocks 8-7 to win the best-of-seven semifinal series 4-2 at the Coquitlam Sports Centre.
In the six games of the series, Dobbie had a playoff-leading 19 goals and 10 assists for 29 points. Coquitlam scored 56 goals in the series and Dobbie figured in more than half of the scoring.
The Adanacs advance to the final against the Langley Thunder, who swept aside the Burnaby Lakers in four games.
"We are very disappointed but very proud of our team's effort,'' said Victoria general manager Chris Welch. "We have a young team and we will learn from this experience. But right now, it is a tough pill to swallow.
"It was another one-goal game in a very tight series. There wasn't very much to separate the teams in the series. Nick Rose [Coquitlam goaltender] had another outstanding performance and he was probably the MVP of the series. Coquitlam's best players [Rose and Dobbie] were at their best against us. We just failed to do that extra bit to get us over the top and that is why they are moving on.''
Rose made 42 saves, while Victoria's Chris Levis stopped 35.
Coquitlam won the first two games of the series before Victoria got untracked with wins in Game 3 and Game 4 before coming home and losing 10-9 in extra time on Tuesday.
Daryl Veltman's third goal of the game at 17: 16 of the third period broke the 7-7 tie and proved to be the winner. Ryan Johnson, Kevin Olson and Jason Jones tallied the other Coquitlam goals.
The teams were tied 2-2 and 5-5 at the period breaks. Victoria trailed 5-2 midway through the second period before rebounding.
Corey Small was an offensive standout for the Shamrocks with four goals. He scored twice on the power play and also added a shorthanded marker. Small ended the playoffs with 16 goals and nine assists.
