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Orangeville goalie beats the odds with Rochester Knighthawks

May 2, 2024   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

Rochester Knighthawks goalie, and Orangeville veteran, Rylan Hartley, is back between the pipes in the NNL after being out with an injury since early December.

The Knighthawks were an underdog heading into the playoffs and rated with a 3 per cent chance of winning a berth by the experts who follow the league.

However, the Knighthawks rose to the challenge and won two games to make the number eight seed for the playoffs.

The Knighthawks won 11-10 over the Georgia Swarm on Friday, April 19, then followed up with a 12-3 win over the Philadelphia Wings on Sunday, April 21, to win the playoff berth.

Former Orangeville Northmen, Kyle Waters and Tyler Halls also play for the Knighthawks.

Rylan has been playing in the NLL for four seasons with his first year in San Diego before moving to Rochester.

“We didn’t worry about the small things, we worried about what we could control,” Rylan said in an interview after the win over Philadelphia. “I think that’s what we did from the front and back end. After this week, it’s great for us and we’re going to keep rolling. Our defence – they’re huge. In this game they went to bat for 60 minutes huge. The defence needs to be credited for what’s on the scoreboard.”

Rylan credits the fans and his family for being behind him when he was off due to injury.

He was finally cleared by his doctor to play after an absence of three months.

Making the playoffs was a big deal but it was short-lived. The NLL has a single elimination format for the quarter-finals, so if you lose a single game, you’re done

The Knighthawks took a 9-6 loss in Saturday’s game to end their season.

Rylan has a long history in lacrosse, winning the Founders Cup in 2016 with the Northmen, and the Minto Cup in 2019. He was also the OLA MVP.

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